Two Way Street
by AngelaBowow
Summary: "As we journey through our lives we all take separate paths. Sometimes they're filled with sorrow, other times they're full of laughs. In life our paths will cross, we won't always be alone. We've seen what's behind us, but our future remains unknown." The journey at Hogwarts for those souls who suffered through The First Wizarding War. JPLE. Marauder Era. Cover Image by Viria13
1. Chapter 1

August 2nd 1971 was an abnormally normal day; at least, it had started out that way. The sun was shining brightly and the birds sang to each other using their own unique melodies. The Evans' family residence always had many lovely birds during the morning, but until August 2nd 1971, there had never been any owls in their yard.

The peaceful silence that had descended upon the household was broken by a giddy squeal which had come from the youngest child of the family, Lily.

"Mummy! Mummy, look! I've just gotten a letter in the post!"

Daisy Evans glanced up from her book to look at her daughter. Lily's dark, scarlet hair was in disarray and a cheeky grin had taken over her face.

"Did you, darling? Well do tell who it's from."

"It's from Hogwarts! Mum, see look here. They're telling me I'm a witch! Just like Severus did, remember?" Lily bounded the last steps to her mother and placed the opened envelope into her hands.

Daisy Evans quickly scanned through the letter, searching for some sign that would tell her this was a foolish prank being played on her daughter, but after realising it was not, she looked back up at Lily with wide eyes. She then proceeded to call out for her husband.

"William! Darling, come look at this!" Lily's father poked his head in from the adjacent room inquisitively before striding over to his wife and daughter. He took the envelope and its attachment of letters and began to read. His wife continued to ramble on to him as he did. "Oh, isn't this wonderful? A real witch in the family; and to think when Lily told us about all this two years ago we didn't believe her." Lily's father looked down at her and smiled.

"I always knew my Lily was special."

At this Lily beamed at him. She opened her mouth to reply but was interrupted by another voice.

"What's going on in here? It sounds like a circus." The voice belonged to Petunia Evans, Lily's older and only sibling.

"Oh, Petunia sweetheart," exclaimed their mother. "Your sister has just been claimed a legitimate witch. It's marvellous, isn't it?"

Petunia scowled. "She's not a witch, mum. Can't you see? That Snape boy has been putting all these silly thoughts in her head. Honestly, I don't know why you allow people like him to befriend your own child."

Lily bristled. "That's a horrible thing to say, Tuney! Snape's a good boy, and it's not his fault that he has to live the life he does. And I am a real witch! This letter says so. It's from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. They're going to teach me how to do magic, and maybe once I'm there, I can ask if you can be a witch, too. That way we can be together." Lily was thoroughly enthusiastic about the idea, but her sister was not.

Petunia's face wrinkled up in disgust. "Why in the world do you think I would want to go to a school for freaks?"

"Petunia! Apologize to your sister! She is not a freak and you shall not call her such mean and degrading names." Petunia rolled her eyes at her mother.  
>"I'm sorry, Lily. There, I apologised and seeing how there is little left for me here, I will excuse myself. You'll find me in my room." With that Petunia Evans departed, leaving the rest of her family to scowl in her wake.<p>

Lily's face continued to display the hurt she felt after hearing what Petunia truly thought about her. "Mum, dad, do you think I'm a freak?"

Her parents were quick to lean down and console her. "Of course not, darling. Your sister is simply taking the news a bit different than the rest of us, but I'm sure she will soon grow to accept you and continue to love you for who you are, Lily."

Lily smiled and hugged them, for she truly thought that things would get better.

James Potter always knew he would receive an acceptance letter to Hogwarts and when he finally did get it, he was ecstatic on the inside but on the outside he played it cool. He walked into the sitting room and plopped down on to the couch next to his mother.

"Hey mum, check it out. My Hogwarts letter finally came. Though, in my opinion, I definitely could have attended earlier." Dorea Potter chuckled at her son. Her reading spectacles dipped slightly as she craned her neck to look at him.

"Is that so? Wouldn't you be afraid of getting crushed by all the big, scary Quidditch players?"

James snorted. "As if. They would be the ones afraid of me." She let out a soft laugh and stood from the couch.

"If you say so, it must be true. We can go to Diagon Alley sometime next week to gather all your school supplies, but until then, don't you dare loose that letter James Alexander." She winked down at him. "Now come along, we're set to have tea and lunch with the MacGregor's." James groaned and rolled his eyes. His mother raised her eyebrows at him.

"Mum, we just saw them yesterday. I'm starting to think that you and dad are planning to live with them."

"We were waiting for you and Freya to go to Hogwarts before we broke the news but seeing as how you seemed to have already figured it out…I suppose we don't have to tell you anymore."

James grinned. "I just know you too well, mum." They laughed and then met Charlus Potter, James' father, in the foyer. He kissed his wife on the cheek in greeting as she and James joined hands. Being way underage, James had to do side-along apparition with either his mother or father.

James felt a tug and then he experienced the feeling of being shoved and boxed into the tiniest space on the planet. At one point, he thought he felt his eyes collide with his brain as it was being smashed by his ear drums. When they finally landed outside the MacGregor's manor, James felt his whole body pop.

"Merlin's beard…that never gets any better with time." His mother smiled at him and suggested that next time they use muggle transportation, an idea which both James and his father strongly disagreed with.

The Potters walked up the stone path leading to the main entrance and when they finally reached the grand mahogany doors, Charlus gripped one of the gold lion knockers and pounded it against the wood. Three loud thumps could be heard echoing off the walls of the house. A second later the door swung open to reveal a little house elf draped in what looked to be a curtain.

"Oh! The Potter family has arrived." The small house elf opened the door wider and stepped out of the way to allow the Potters entrance into the house. "Madame MacGregor is in the back with Mistress Freya and Master is in his study room. Tael shall alert them right away, sirs and madam." The house elf bowed and then departed.

Mr. Potter headed to the study while James and his mother began to move towards the back of the house. When they arrived, only Mrs. MacGregor could be spotted.

Dorea bid her a good morning as the two hugged in greeting. They then proceeded to talk about ministry affairs as house elves popped in and out bringing teas and sweets as they did.

Nora MacGregor was quite pretty for her age. While James' mother had long chestnut hair and hazel eyes, Nora had shoulder length, dark crimson hair with large blue eyes. She was striking in her beauty while Dorea was more subtle in hers. James thought that maybe he simply had a strange thing for red heads.

Nora noticed that he was still present and told him that he would be able to find Freya in the labyrinth. James nodded politely and thanked her before leaving, taking the hint that he was no longer needed or wanted with the two older women. Not that he cared much anyway.

The MacGregor Family had dozens of gardens surrounding their house, unlike the Potters who only had a few but their yard contained a full size Quidditch pitch which James and his father used for fun and practice.

At the back of the French Garden there loomed an oversized labyrinth with flowers of all different colours blooming along the hedges. James sighed before entering, hoping this time, he wouldn't get lost. As he made his way through, he couldn't help but admire his surroundings. The sun was shining down and flowers bloomed magically as he walked between the hedges, giving off a mystical feeling. The maze itself was magical and thus the walls were always shifting. James could never figure out how Freya made her way through the thing and emerge from it alive.

After what felt like a lifetime of walking, he finally entered the centre most part of the maze. It was a square area with a large fountain in the middle. The fountain was marble and in the middle sprouted a great lion and adorned on its head was an extravagant crown. Engraved on the circular bottom were letters that formed the words ' 'S RIOGHAL MO DHREAM'. In all the years James had known the MacGregors he had never asked what that meant. He gazed around the area. A wooden bench sat on the farthest side of the square from the point in which James had entered and flowers were blooming all over it. He spotted a head of hair with a colour that was identical to Nora's and knew that Freya must be sitting on the other side of the fountain. James strutted over and sat down next to her.

Freya MacGregor was much too beautiful for her age. She had flawless creamy skin that contrasted greatly against her long, dark crimson, softly curled hair. Although she spent a lot of time in the heat of the gardens, it was never frizzy or out of place. She had a cute button nose and full pink lips. She always seemed to have a small blush, but that could have just been because of her Scottish blood. Unlike her mother though, Freya had eyes so silver they looked like liquid mercury.

But even in all her beauty, Freya and James were nothing more than friends and they liked it that way. When they were seven years old they had gone into the Italian Garden and kissed because after seeing their parents do it so often, they had both wanted to know what it was like. After, they thought it so disgusting that they made their own faux unbreakable vow to never kiss anybody ever again.

Freya smiled when she felt him sit down beside her. "Good morning, Jem." Even her voice was musical. It had a sweet English ring with a little bit of spice from her Scottish accent. James liked listening to her talk. She was also the only person he allowed to call him Jem.

"Good morning, Fey. Why are you out in the gardens so early?"

She shrugged. "Its peaceful here; always so serene and quiet. I like it."

James laughed. "What? The giant house you have isn't peaceful and quiet? Only three people live inside. How crazy does it get? Unless there's something you aren't telling me." He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

She smacked his thigh. Hard. "Don't be a hypocrite. My house isn't half the size of yours, you dolt. And besides, the house is quiet but it's also empty. The gardens are full of life." James rolled his eyes and began to rub his thigh to help with the now growing sting. "So, I presume you've received your Hogwarts letter as well?"

He nodded. "Mum says we can go supply shopping letter this week. We should go together." She nodded her head in agreement. They sat in silence for a little while before James spoke up again. "Do you think we'll be sorted into Gryffindor?" Freya snorted.

"I don't believe we have even the slightest chance of being put in any house _besides _Gryffindor. You're bloody related to him, and everybody in my family has been in that house. Besides, my clan's crest has a lion on it. Look." She took out the necklace that had been hidden under her shirt. The pendant and chain were both gold and the pendant was circular. Inside the innermost circle was a lion that bore its teeth out in a growl with its tongue hanging out, almost like a snake's. Its head was adorned with a crown. Around the outer circle the same motto as the one on the fountain was repeated and at the bottom of the pendant it read MACGREGOR.

"What does that mean? The motto, I mean," James asked fingering the chain around her neck.

"It's written in Scottish Gaelic and it means 'My race is royal' or 'My blood is royal'. They both get the same meaning across though so you can choose whichever your favourite is." James laughed.

He paused, lost in thought. "What do you reckon it'll be like? Living there and finally being able to do magic?" Freya raised her eyebrows.

"Are you telling me that you of all people haven't been practicing underage magic?" James let a cheeky grin slide across his face. "That's what I thought, and I'm not sure. I suppose it will be frightening and exciting at the same time, yeah?" Freya looked at the sky and frowned. "Seems like it's bound to rain soon; we should probably head back towards the house then." She stood and motioned for James to get moving.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going." He glanced up at the sky. "That's weird, it was so sunny when I arrived," he remarked. Freya shrugged.

"The weather is always pretty nasty in the UK." The pair weaved their way through the maze and at some point, they had clasped hands. "James," he looked up at her face. She never really used his full name. "Promise me that no matter what happens when we attend school, we'll always be friends."

His eyebrows knit together and he nodded. "I promise." Whilst his right hand held her left, he lifted his empty one with his little finger sticking out. It wrapped around hers and they both leaned in and kissed the fisted ends of their joined promise, or to them, their faux unbreakable vow. Sometime after that, James spoke up again. "If you're sorted into Slytherin, I just might have to break that promise."

Freya grinned. "That's acceptable." They laughed and continued to walk back together.

Sirius Black hated spending time with his family, and unfortunately for him, his family was together quite a lot. He had just received his Hogwarts letter and was now being coddled by his mother and two older cousins, Bellatrix and Narcissa. Sirius had tuned out from their annoying voices but was brought back when pale fingers were snapped in his face.

"Sirius, are you even listening to what your cousins are saying," his mother asked. There was an impatient tone to her voice. Sirius nodded quickly. "Good. Now pay closer attention."

He mentally rolled his eyes. He wished that he could say his mother was an old, ugly hag but she was not. She had perfect blonde hair that was always tied into a neat bun that rested on the back of her head. She was tall and regal and emanated a dark feeling as well as power. If she had not been his mother, Sirius could not think of anytime he would ever willingly approach her.

"As I was saying…" Bella snapped. "You'll be sorted in to Slytherin House like the rest of us. Cissy still has two years left at that blasted school, but you won't be seeing me anywhere when you get there. Andromeda has graduated as well but we don't speak of the filthy blood traitor. I can't believe she just went off and married some mudblood. After everything we've done for her! You would think she would show a little gratitude." Bella was snarling by the time she finished her little speech to her younger cousin. "But you won't be like that, right Sirius?" All eyes turned on him. He shrugged.

"I don't know what I'm going to be like when I get older." Wrong answer. Bella let loose a stinging hex that hit Sirius right in the chest. "OW! What the bloody hell was that for?"

"Don't smart mouth me, little cousin. If you act out during your years at Hogwarts we will know about it and we won't be happy." Sirius wanted to snort but knew he would get in trouble for doing so. "That means no making friends with Gryffindors, no befriending mudbloods and most importantly, don't think you can just turn your back on your family, Sirius because you're just like us and no matter what you do and how hard you try, you'll always be a Black."

*†‡†*

Lily was awestruck as she and Severus walked through Diagon Alley. People were everywhere! Going in and out of shops, standing in front of shops, sitting out in front of shops, playing with animals, doing whatever. All these simple things seemed to amaze Lily because all the people around her were witches and wizards. It was…unbelievable. She never would have believed something as magical as this could happen to someone as ordinary as her.

Store windows were lined with trinkets and treasures, owl and cats, broomsticks, jars of slimy looking creatures, eyeballs and sweets and something that seemed to resemble a telescope. Lily felt she could stay there and stare forever and she still would never be satisfied until she could see more. More of this amazing world she was now a part of and more of all the amazing things it held. Everything was just…amazing!

Lily and Severus had just wrapped up their school shopping and Eileen, Severus' mum, thought it would be nice to go and have ice cream at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. They had just left Ollivanders and so Lily could not stop playing with her wand. It seemed crazy to her that she had a real, working magic stick. The owner had told her it was 10¼ʺ, made of willow wood, and the inside had unicorn hair. The moment she heard that she decided that before she died, she would see and pet a unicorn. No questions asked.

She and Severus sat outside the ice cream shop at a small table that was covered by a large, orange umbrella. They didn't speak much but shared funny glances and looks; occasionally making faces at each other as they happily ate their ice cream. Lily's ice cream cone had melted drastically and so when she finished, she excused herself to go to the loo and wash her hands.

She had no trouble finding it and once inside she noticed that she wasn't the only young witch. The girl washing her hands at one of the sinks had red hair just like Lily did. She had no idea if that was what had possessed her to speak to the girl, but once the words were out of her mouth, there was no going back.

"Hello, there." Lily found herself smiling through the mirror at her. The girl looked up with raised eyebrows, turned her head to see if anybody else was around and then answered.

"Hello." Lily noted that the girl had a really beautiful voice to go along with the rest of her perfect features. She wondered if she used potions from that beauty store she and Sev had walked past.

Lily continued to smile at the girl and carried on the conversation. "I'm Lily, Lily Evans. What's your name?"

"Freya MacGregor." The girl was straight and to the point with Lily. "I don't know any Evans… do you happen to be a muggle-born?"

Lily nodded. "I'm here with my friend, Severus. He's a…half-blood. Yeah that's what he told me. Are you muggle-born, too?" Lily hoped she wasn't coming off too rude, but it would be nice to relate to someone else who was also going through this transition.

Much to Lily's disappointment, Freya shook her head. She had finished washing her hands and had turned to leave. "Well, welcome to the wizarding world, Lily Evans. I guess I'll see you 'round, yeah?" Before Lily could reply Freya was out the door.

When she returned to the table, Severus and his mother were patiently waiting for her. Eileen smiled when she saw her approach. "There you are, Lily. We thought for a moment that you had wondered off and got lost. The wizarding world can be a dangerous place for young, inexperienced witches. Try to be careful when you go off on your own, alright?" Without waiting for a reply she began to usher the two kids back to the Leaky Cauldron so they could return home.

As they walked, a thought occurred to Lily. She turned to Severus. "Sev," he craned his head to meet her gaze as they walked. "Does it make a difference, being muggle-born?" Severus looked taken aback by the question.

"No. It doesn't make a difference. Why do you ask?" She shrugged.

"It was just a thought, I suppose," she mumbled. Severus raised an eyebrow but didn't push the matter. It would take Lily a few years to realise that he had lied to her.

*†‡†*

James and Freya were currently outside of Broomstix. James had his face fully pressed against the window, the heat from his breath fogging up the outside. Freya was attempting to drag him away.

"Jem! You already have the newest model! You aren't even allowed to keep one at Hogwarts this year so there is no point of drooling all over the window." Freya pulled on his robes but his feet were planted firmly to the ground. She growled in frustration.

"Who cares if I can't bring a broomstick? That sure isn't going to stop me from sneaking out to play." Freya rolled her eyes and pointed out that James already owned the broomstick on display. "Yeah but it looks beautiful here, under the spotlight. Simply breath-taking." James sighed and continued to make googly eyes until Freya was finally successful in dragging him away. She dragged him down the streets until they reached Ollivanders. She pushed open the door and they walked inside. James' face winkled up. "It smells like old people." This earned a smack from Freya and a quick scolding which James paid no attention to. They walked to the counter and he rang the tiny silver bell. There was a shuffling noise in the back and then an old man with wild, white hair appeared.

"Hello, children! Welcome to Ollivander's Wand Shop, I'm Garrick Ollivander. How may I be of service to you both?" He had a cheery voice and he came off as somebody who would always be happy.

"Hello, we're going to be first years at Hogwarts and we've come to get our wands," Freya said politely. Mr. Ollivander seized them up and then proceeded to ask them a couple of questions before disappearing into the back of the store.

"He seems like kind of a nutter, don' he," James whispered once he thought the old man was out of ear shot. Freya scowled at him and told him to play nice. James grinned. "You totally agree with me." He watched as the corner of her mouth turned up into a small, quick smile, but he knew what it meant.

Mr. Ollivander shortly returned holding two, dusty, small boxes. He held the one in his left hand towards Freya proclaiming that ladies go first. She shot James a smug look which he responded to by sticking out his tongue. She gently opened the box and took out the sleek, black wand. There were thin lines of silver flowing through it. Like a pulse. It looked beautiful in her hand. "This wand is 10¾ʺ, made of Elm wood, pliable with a phoenix feather core. Very good for charm work and experimental spell making." He winked at her. "You can go on and try a simple charm, now." Freya set the box at the feet and pointed her wand down at it.

She swished her wrist and spoke. "_Wingardium Leviosa."_ After a second, the box began to float off the ground. She lifted it higher and higher until it was almost at the ceiling, it shifted slightly and then she dropped the charm, causing the box to fall and smack James in the face, knocking off his glasses. He cried out as the same time Freya burst out laughing. Mr. Ollivander smiled.

"A perfect fit," he complimented. "What was your name again?" As Freya told him his eyes lit up. "I will be expecting great things from you, Freya". He then leaned down and presented James with the other box he had been carrying. James took out the wand and tested its fit in his hand. Perfect. There were carved cobwebs into his wand which James found he enjoyed tracing. Mr. Ollivander seemed to agree. "That there is 11ʺ, Mahogany, pliable as well and also contains a phoenix feather core. It will be great for transfiguration. You may also have a go at a simple spell."

James smirked, he had been practicing all different sorts of spells in his free time and had a fun one in mind. He turned quickly and pointed his wand at Freya "_Tarantallegra!_" Freya's feet began to dance involuntarily, in a sort of Irish jig.

"James Alexander Potter! If you don't take this jinx off of me in ten seconds I'll tell your mother it was _you_ that set her rose bushes on fire last year!" After hearing this James' face sobered and he quickly cast the counter-curse. Due to lack of equilibrium from her dance, she fell back onto her bum. She scowled up at James who returned it with a grin.

Mr. Ollivander was smiling at the two as James helped her off the ground. "I can already tell that you will both be very powerful one day. And those wands will help you a long as you go. A perfect match, if I do say so." As they left the store, both James and Freya wondered if he had still been talking about the wands at the end.

"What an old hoot," James remarked as they made their way to Magical Menagerie. "So what kind of a pet do you want, Fey?"

She sighed. "I really want a kitten but I know I need an owl and mum and dad say I can only have one for now. I haven't been able to choose yet."

James considered this. "Well why don't we share an owl? I'm sure it could just bring both of our mail and then that way you can also have a cat."

Freya beamed at him. "Oh would you really do that for me, Jem?" He nodded. Freya smiled even bigger and threw her arms around him in a tight hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! We can pick out the kitten and owl together!" Being overly excited, she grabbed onto him and sprinted the rest of the way to the store. Once they arrived, she headed straight over to the kittens and James followed loyal behind. James thought they only spent a second but Freya had already picked out the kitten she wanted. It was grey with white spots, and white booted feet. The kitten purred against her chest and looked at James with its big eyes. He noticed that the cat had one blue eye and one gold. "He's perfect! Don't you think? Here you can hold him." She handed James the tiny kitten that grew comfortable in his arms right away and fell asleep. He couldn't help but smile. "He likes you," she observed. "Do you want to get him?" She looked at him with her silver eyes full of hope. James nodded and reminded her that they now had to go pick out an owl. They walked among the cages with the sleeping kitten still in his arms and came across a brown, tawny owl with innocent yellow eyes. When it saw them it let out a shy 'hoot.' "What do ya think of this one? Cute isn't she?"

James inspected the owl. "Yeah she looks alright. Grab her cage and let's get outta here so we can get this little one home," he said motioning to the cat. As the two waited in line they began to discuss names for their new pets. They had agreed on the name Athena for the owl and had been arguing about the cat for a while. "What kind of a name is Ghaol for a cat," James argued.

Freya scowled. "You're saying it wrong! And it means love in Scottish Gaelic. It's a fine name."

James rolled his eyes. "Well sorry to break it to you, but not everybody is Scottish!"

"Oh like you have a better idea. I'd bet 100 galleons that you want to name him something dumb that has to do with Quidditch." James was silent for a second.

"Nothing in Quidditch is dumb…," he mumbled.

"So I was right?"

"Okay, fine I wanted to name him Snitch." She groaned. "What? It's not half as bad as Ghaol!" The two bantered for a few more minutes before finally deciding on the name Ace. "I guess it fits him…though it's not better than Snitch."

"Uh huh, keep telling yourself that, Jem. Now hurry up, we're going to be late to meet our parents." The two rushed the rest of the way to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. They found their parents sitting outside eating ice cream like they were still teenagers, which they obviously were not. Mr. MacGregor noticed the children approach first.

"There you are," he exclaimed standing from his seat. "You're a tab bit late now, don't you think," he scolded pointing at his watch.

Freya attempted to catch her breath before answering. "It was…his fault. He…was drooling…all over…," she gestured wildly with her hands. "Broomsticks." Mr. Potter and her own father laughed. James was smiling cheekily.

Mrs. Potter spoke up. "You did manage to get everything?" He and Freya nodded. "Good. We should be on our way now, unless there is anything at all you could think to get?" They thought about it for a second, and then shook their heads signalling they had gathered all the necessities for school. Their parents stood to leave, but Freya said she needed to run to the loo before taking off.

She weaved her way through people to get to the back of the store and then entered the loo. It was empty. She quickly picked a stall and then once finished, went to wash her hands. As she did, another red headed girl walked in and started to clean the ice cream off of her hands. Freya felt her eyes on her and then the girl spoke up.

At first, Freya thought the girl may have been taking to someone who had just walked in but when she saw that there was no one else, she replied. The girl introduced herself as Lily Evans and had a sweet voice and face. Freya immediately took a liking to this girl, who she found out was a muggle-born. She looked at her watch and knew her parents would be getting impatient.

She turned to leave. "Well, welcome to the wizarding world, Lily Evans. I guess I'll see you 'round, yeah?" Freya made her way quickly back while thinking about the sweet, muggle-born she had just met. As she approached, her parents led the way as she and James followed closely behind. As they walked together James asked what had taken her so long in the loo. "I met a really sweet muggle-born," she paused. "I think her name was Lily. She had red hair like mine! Isn't that crazy? Maybe we'll make good friends." James told her that the muggle-born girl couldn't possibly be prettier than her and Freya laughed. "You haven't met her yet, Jem." She winked at him and they continued on.

*†‡†*

Sirius stood at Platform 9¾ with his family as they were saying their goodbyes. Narcissa was the only one coming with him on the train. His mother was rambling on about things he ought to remember but he couldn't be bothered with her. He was so close to freedom, so close to finally getting away from his awful family. The last thing he heard his mother tell him before they left was 'Make us proud, Sirius.' And he intended to do the exact opposite, for Sirius Black cursed the day he was born and cursed his own name.

There was a short line to get on the train and as he and Narcissa walked over to it, a lot of people parted with fear in their eyes when they saw her. Sirius looked up to see a satisfied smirk on her face. They were almost on the train when a short boy with messy black hair and glasses too big for his face stood in their way. Sirius' older cousin growled in frustration. She told the kid to move once, but the boy completely ignored her and stared on ward like she wasn't there. Sirius liked this kid. He could tell his cousin was starting to get frustrated waiting and he took the opportunity as it presented itself.

"Maybe you should just leave, Narcissa," Sirius suggested nonchalantly. She gaped down at her younger cousin.

"Excuse me, what did you say, Sirius?" Her eyes narrowed down at him and she glared with daggers. Sirius calmly repeated himself and couldn't help but let the corner of his mouth lift up in a tiny smirk. She huffed. "Just wait until your mother hears about this. You'll be dead meat in a second." She stomped away and he rolled his eyes. The women in his family had such bad attitudes.

The short kid with glasses grinned up at him. He held out his hand. "I'm James Potter, and you are?" Sirius took his hand in a firm shake and introduced himself. "I think we will be great mates, Sirius Black." The two boys grinned at each other and got on the train, picking an empty compartment. James sat down and looked out the window, searching for someone. When he spotted whoever he was looking for, he waved his arms frantically and yelled. "Freya! Get in here!" He leaned back in and closed the window. His hair was even messier and his glasses askew on his face. "So, I'm guessing you don't really like your family much?"

This caused Sirius to bark out laughter. "Not at all, mate. They all ramble on about pure-blood supremacy and dumb things like that. They don't even realise how wrong it is. It disgusts me." James nodded in agreement.

"I come from a pure-blood family, but they're not like that. My mum and dad help out with muggle-born rights occasionally in their free time. In my opinion, a witch is a witch and a wizard a wizard no matter where they come from originally." Sirius liked this James fellow a lot. He seemed to have the same thoughts as Sirius. James opened his mouth to say more but the compartment door slid open to reveal the most beautiful girl Sirius had ever laid eyes on. James stood when as she came in. "Good thing you're here now. You can watch the compartment while Sirius and I go grab some sweets for the trip." He stood at the door and motioned for Sirius to follow. As they walked down the narrow train corridor, his mind wandered back to the beautiful red head.

"Who was that," he found himself asking. James looked confused for a second.

"Who? The girl in the compartment?" Sirius nodded. "Oh, that's Freya MacGregor. She's practically my sister. She's a first year, too. Wait…you are a first year right?" He replied with a quick yes and James continued on. "Our parents are really close so Freya and I were raised together and she's the only real friend I've had until you." James looked a little sheepish. "But I never did any girly things with her, ya know," he was quick to add that. Sirius laughed and they reached the trolley containing all of the sweets. While they waited in line, they saw a tall, lanky boy standing alone in the corner of the train car. James called out to him. "Hey!" The boy didn't look up. "Hey, kid in the corner," he called again. This time the boy glanced up to meet James' face. He and Sirius motioned him over to where they were in line. He looked hesitant until he finally seemed to convince himself to go.

He stood awkwardly next to the two shorter boys, James being the smallest. Sirius introduced himself first and held out his hand. The boy shook it gently and said his name was Remus Lupin. The boys were next in line and James asked if Remus wanted anything. Remus looked hesitant again but then shook his head no. James looked him over and then bought more candy than necessary. He handed Remus five Chocolate Frogs and handed Sirius two bags of Jelly Slugs and James himself carried the rest of the candy back to their compartment. Remus and Sirius followed behind him.

They entered to see two more people sat opposite Freya. A boy with clothes that didn't fit him and greasy, long black hair and next to him was a girl with red hair similar to Freya's and bright, sparkling green eyes. James looked between the two new comers before turning to Fey.

"Who're they," has asked plopping down next to her and setting all the candy in his arms on the table by the window. Freya grabbed a bag of Jelly Slugs and popped a few in her mouth.

She pointed to the boy. "That's Severus Snape," she moved to point to the girl next to him. "And that's the Lovely Lily Evans, whom I met a few weeks ago in the loo at the ice cream parlour." James remembered hearing her say something about that.

He remembered Freya saying that she had been muggle-born. "Right, so you're both muggle-born, then," he asked looking between the two of them. The Snape bloke snorted.

Lily shook her head. "Severus isn't but I am." She smiled sweetly.

James grinned and ran a hand through his hair. "When we get to school, you'll want to be Sorted into Gryffindor. It's the best house of all the four. That's where my whole family has been in, Freya's too." He motioned between the two of them. "It's where we're going. What about you lot? Where do you think you'll go?"

Sirius sighed. "Unfortunately, everybody from my family has always been in Slytherin, but I refuse to be like them." He stopped and thought for a moment. "I have no idea which house I'll end up in."

The all looked at Remus who shifted uncomfortably under their gazes. He shrugged. "My father was in Ravenclaw and my mum is a muggle. I haven't a clue where I'll end up tonight."

The next person in question was Lily. "I don't know…I don't really know how this Sorting works but Severus thinks he and I will be in Slytherin." Sirius couldn't help but burst out laughing. Lily looked taken aback and narrowed her eyes. "What's so funny?"

The moment he calmed down, he spoke. "You're a muggle-born and you think you'll be Sorted into Slytherin? You must be a nutter if you think you can survive one day in that house without getting hexed by some pure-blood supremacist." Lily went to speak but Snape interrupted her.

"Lily would have me to protect her, and Slytherin house will be great for both her and me," he said defiantly glaring at Sirius. This time it was James who burst out laughing.

"You think that you could protect her? That being Sorted in to Slytherin could be beneficial to anybody?" James scoffed. "That's hilarious, _Snivellus_."

Severus bristled at his new nickname and narrowed his eyes at James. "That's rich coming from some stupid, oaf who only wants to be Sorted into Gryffindor house because of his blasted father," James went to jump at Severus but Freya held him back with one arm and drew her wand. She pointed it into Severus' chest.

"Don't you dare talk about Charlus Potter like that," She warned. "His blasted father is twice the man you'll ever be." Freya sneered at him and Severus glared back.

Lily stood up and grabbed his arm. "Maybe we should leave, Sev. I get the feeling we aren't wanted here anymore."

Freya shook her head. "You are, Lily. You'll always be welcome around me, but he," she jabbed her wand at Severus. "He is not." Lily nodded in understanding and she and Severus left anyway. Freya then turned and glared at the three boys. "Honestly! We haven't even arrived at school yet and you three are already causing trouble. You should be ashamed of your selves." The boys bowed their heads in shame. She eyed Remus and Sirius before asking for their names. Once they were given she went on to say that they shouldn't let James influence them too much.

"Hey! They make their own decisions and besides, I can tell these two are going to make great mates for someone like me." Freya raised an eyebrow. James continued on. "See, I've figured it all out. Remus is level headed and can monitor us and be our reminding, good friend, and Sirius looks like he could cause enough trouble to destroy the Ministry of Magic in one day. And with me, well," he grinned. "We'd make the perfect team." Freya shook her head and laughed.

"I'll never understand what runs through your tiny brain, James Potter." They all laughed at that. The rest of the ride to Hogwarts wasn't as eventful. They stayed in the compartment, only leaving to change into their school robes, and told each other about one another. And slowly, they became friends.

*†‡†*

Once the train arrived at the station in Hogsmeade, the first years were corralled to the shore by a big, friendly man named Hagrid, who then got them situated into boats. Lily and Severus sat with two other girls who didn't attempt to make any conversation with either of them. The castle loomed up over the lake with a strange, intriguing ambiance that Lily couldn't particularly place as anything she had ever felt before. There were towers sprouting out of thick stone buildings, lights illuminating every beautiful and intricate window. The only thing Lily could compare it to be was something out of a muggle story book and it was she who felt like the princess.

Once the boats docked on the other side, they were led by another, older witch into the castle and up to the doors of the Great Hall. The witch assembled all the students into neat lines. Lily noticed that the woman was tall, and severe-looking. She was adorned with emerald green robes with a sort of pattern on it as well as a pointed hat that had been cocked to one side. She wore on her face a very prim and professional expression and her black hair was pulled tightly back into a neat bun. Lily immediately knew she never wanted to cross this specific professor.

"Listen up, please," she spoke with authority and riled down the students quickly. "Welcome, first years, to Hogwarts. Now, through those doors is the Great Hall in which you will be Sorted into your individual houses. Once Sorted, you will go and sit at the table of your designated house and the headmaster will then give a short speech and the feast will begin. You will receive more information pertaining to your schooling tomorrow during breakfast which promptly begins at 7:30 am. Do not be late." With that she turned and flicked her arms out causing the doors to open.

The first years walked through the middle of the Great Hall until they reached the front of the room. The headmaster stood and gave a brief welcome and then motioned for the Sorting to begin. Directly in the centre a few meters from the head table was a stool with a plain hat sitting on it. The hat then belted out a song which, Lily soon realised was about the school itself. There was lots of humour and many times the students would all burst out laughing. Once it had finished its song, the witch in green robes picked up the hat and then unrolled a scroll.

"Addison, Courtney," she called out. A blonde girl emerged from the crowd and sat herself on the stool. The teacher placed the hat on the girls head and then a soft murmuring could be heard coming from it, but no one could make out what it was saying. Then very quickly it yelled out, "Hufflepuff!" The girl slid from the stool and happily made her way over to the table that was cheering and clapping. A yellow and black banner hung above their table.

"Agerwall, Patricia." Another girl went up. This time the hat called out for Ravenclaw. Lily felt a hand touch her arm and she turned to see Freya standing behind her smiling.

"Hey, I just thought I'd come by and apologize for what happened on the train. I hope we can still be friends even though I kind of threatened your other friend." She smiled sheepishly and Lily beamed back.

"Of course! It wasn't your fault that happened." Lily rolled her eyes. "You know what they say, 'boys will be boys' and all that." Freya laughed and then turned her attention back to the ceremony. A few more people went by and then a familiar name was called.

"Black, Sirius."

*†‡†*

Sirius made his way through the crowd and then sat down on the stool. He felt the leather hat being placed on his head and then a low, almost sinister voice.

"Hmmmm, interesting. A Black with so much courage, and loyalty as well, but you're much too good for Hufflepuff…where to put you, where to put you. You're smart and ambitious but not the Ravenclaw type." Sirius clenched his fist and willed the hat to say anything but Slytherin. "It's got to be…GRYFFINDOR!"

Sirius smiled so big his cheeks began to hurt; he walked over to the cheering table and sat down. He glanced over at the Slytherins and saw many of them had dropped their jaws. Narcissa especially looked surprised and angry. Sirius on the other hand, had never felt better in his life.

*†‡†*

Lily and Freya stayed close and when she was finally called, Freya squeezed her hand and wished her good luck. Severus smiled at her and mouthed a quick encouragement. Lily sat on the stool and then once the felt the hat being placed on her head she waited for the voice. It was silent for a moment.

"A muggle-born…very, very smart. Lots of potential in Ravenclaw for you. Also kindness, yes and loyalty…what a hard decision…but look at your bravery. You know what is right and you do it. There's only one place to put you and that's…GRYFFINDOR!" Lily smiled and hopped off the stool. She padded her way over to the table where Sirius moved over to make room for her but she ignored him and instead sat with a boy named Jonathan Davies. The next person to join the Gryffindor first years was Remus Lupin.

"MacGregor, Freya."

James squeezed her hand for good luck before she ascended the short stairs and sat down on the stool. The hat was placed on her head for a mere second before it bellowed out a loud Gryffindor. Freya smirked as she made her way to the table and sat next to Sirius, and across from Lily.

"Well that didn't take very long," Sirius remarked. Mostly everyone laughed. Freya was smiling.

"I guess I'm just a true Gryffindor all around." By the end of the sorting, there were ten first years in Gryffindor house. James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Jonathan Davies, Lily Evans, Freya MacGregor, Marlene McKinnon, Paige Williamson and Sylvia Parker. Unfortunately for Lily, Severus was sorted into Slytherin and she only caught a couple of glances at him before the headmaster stood to give his speech.

"Quiet, please," he called out to the students. The hall quickly fell into silence. "Thank you, now I want to wish all returning students a welcome back, may this school year be as prosperous as the last. To the new students, welcome to your new home, I hope you find all things accommodating and to your liking. I know you are all hungry but before we start the feast a few rules must be gone over." A collective groan sounded in the hall but the headmaster simply smiled. "Professor Sprout has planted a new tree on the grounds and students shall not, under any circumstance, approach the tree. The consequences of doing so may be deadly. A warning to all adventurous first years, the Forbidden Forest is off limits to all students unless they are accompanied by an adult." His eyes scanned the crowd from behind his half-moon spectacles and then he smiled. "On that note, let the feast begin." He waved his arms and dozens upon dozens plates of food appeared on all the tables.

"Bloody hell," James exclaimed. "I've never seen this much food in one place!" His hazel eyes sparkled gold behind his large, square glasses. All the boys nodded with their mouths agape and then in a second they had mountains of food piled onto their plates, quickly stuffing as much as they could into their mouths at once. Freya and Lily glanced at one another and rolled their eyes as they giggled. Freya asked Jonathan Davies to switch seats. His mouth was too full to respond verbally so he nodded his head and then they crawled under the table both emerging on the opposite side from where they had previously been sitting. The girls grinned at each other and then began to look at the food the boys had graciously left for them. It was close to nothing.

Freya scowled. "You are all pigs, the lot of you. Not even saving any for the ladies at the table. What would your mothers say?" All the boys looked slightly sheepish save for Sirius who just snorted and kept eating which won him a short glare from both girls. Freya grabbed James' plate and hauled it over to her. He let out a mangled protest as small pieces of food fell from his mouth. Lily wrinkled her nose in disgust as Freya just grinned at him and settled for putting the plate between them. Jonathan regarded them weirdly.

"Are you two going to get married or something," he asked.

The two looked at each other and then burst out laughing. They gripped onto their stomachs and didn't stop laughing until they were both crying. James sobered first.

"You think…," he had to stop to catch his breath. "That we…could actually ever…get married?" He continued to laugh.

Freya was grinning when she replied. "Jem is like my brother not my boyfriend. We've known each other far too long to be able to look at one another in a romantic way." She grabbed a chicken wing. "I've seen Jem piss his pants and cry like he was about to die. You just don't think of people that way after a certain point." James was blushing as he glared at her.

"That wasn't half as bad as when you saw me go to the loo and you thought you could stand up and pee and made a huge mess in the bathroom. You cried for like an hour thinking the house elves were going to tell your parents." Every boy at the table broke out into a fit of laughter save Remus who tried but failed to hide his smile. Peter, on the other hand, just stared off into space. Freya's face flushed so red it matched her hair.

Lily glared at him. "Oh shut it, Potter."

James chuckled and made a face at her. "Make me, Evans." In retaliation, she picked up an apple and threw it at his face. Lily missed, though and it ended up hitting him in the chest.

Freya regained composure and her eyebrows rose. "How do you ever expect to play Quidditch if you can't even catch an apple, Jem?" He blushed but continued to glare at Lily before changing the subject.

The rest of the feast was spent exchanging stories and getting to know one another. There was a slightly hostile feeling anytime words were exchanged between James and Lily but other than that, all the first years seemed to get on fine. Remus only added his opinion once or twice throughout the conversation and Peter generally just agreed with whatever James and Sirius said. It would be an interesting couple of years for sure.

*†‡†*

At the end of the evening, when all the students and teachers lay asleep in their beds, Lily Evans lay awake in anticipation for the following school day. She had always been one of those kids that stayed up all night thinking about how the first day of school would go but this was different. She wouldn't be attending muggle school anymore and that terrified her. She barely knew anything about this world but she vowed to herself that she would learn and that by the end of the month, she'd fit in just like Freya did. Freya. Lily turned to the bed next to her own and whispered to see if she was still awake. After a moment the curtain was pulled back and a sleepy-eyed girl with startling red hair stared back at Lily. She looked around the room as if searching for a problem and when she couldn't find one, her eyebrows knit together in a silent question.

Lily toyed with her sheets. "Are you nervous," she whispered, stuttering. "I mean for school tomorrow."

Freya thought for a moment and then shook her head. "Why? Are you?"

Lily blushed but in the darkness of the room, it wasn't noticeable. "I'm just scared that…that I won't fit in. People like you belong in this world and I'm just…not like you." She shook her head. "It's a hard feeling to explain. I know I'll always have Severus but it doesn't make me feel more connected in anyway." Lily sighed. "I'm rubbish at explaining this."

"It's okay, Lily. I can't imagine how weird all this must be weird for you, but I promise that I'll try to do everything I can to make you feel more welcome." She paused. "Do you wanna come sleep in bed with me? They're kinda big." Lily nodded and crawled out of her own, her feet padding quickly over to the bed next to hers and got in before sliding the curtain closed. Their scarlet hair was almost identical to the deep velvety sheets for Gryffindor house. The girls smiled at each other and then closed their eyes, taking comfort in the feeling that only a friend could provide.

*†‡†*

Remus Lupin, Sirius Black and James Potter sat in a circle eating candy and talking as the other two members of their house slept. Being boys, the conversation was obviously about girls and Quidditch. Sirius popped a jelly slug into his mouth and eyed Remus. "So, Remus…fancy any girls?" He winked and flashed a cheeky grin at the taller boy who just blushed.

His eyes darted around the room, unsure of how to answer. "Well, they're all very pretty," he answered vaguely. He opened his mouth to say more but shook his head. "None of them would ever like me though." James chucked a chocolate frog at him.

"That's rubbish! With friends like us," he gestured between himself and Sirius. "You could have any crazy bird you wanted." He winked at Remus. "Sylvia Parker did seem to be ogling you at the welcome feast." Remus' face flushed.

"Well then what about you, James," Remus asked quickly, wanting to shift the attention form himself. "Would you really never consider Freya? She's absolutely beautiful. So is Lily Evans."

James snorted. "_Lily Evans_," he began. "Is going to be the death of me. If we were the last two people on this planet, and there were only sheep left a long with us. I'd snog the sheep." Sirius burst into laughter and Remus smiled.

"Maybe your opinion will change." Remus suggested with a shrug.

James' face wrinkled up. "Not bloody likely."


	2. Chapter 2

Five Years Later

Freya MacGregor stood patiently waiting at Hogsmeade station next to her fuming best friend, Lily Evans. Their fifth year at Hogwarts had just come to an end and they were waiting to return back to King's Cross Station. Freya surveyed Lily out of the corner of her eye. She was tapping her foot repeatedly on the ground, her face stuck in a sour expression. After the incident with Severus, Lily had been in a constant bad mood, especially when James was around. Freya sighed. "You know, if you keep taping your foot like that, you may just put a crack in the station floor." Lily ceased the movement of her foot and rolled her eyes at Freya. She looked down at her watch and then threw her arms into the air in exasperation.

"They tell us to be down at the station fifteen minutes before nine o'clock and it's currently two minutes 'til and the blasted thing isn't even close! There has been no whistle sounded, no chugging! I doubt it's even—," Lily's rant was cut off by the distracting sound of the Hogwarts Express' whistle. Freya smirked at her friend.

The girls turned to see the train pulling up to the station. Once it had come to a full stop, they picked up their belongings and lugged them onto the train, quickly finding an empty compartment. As they worked on levitating their luggage up, their concentration was broken by the compartment door banging open, causing Lily's trunk to bang against the wall and Freya's to land on her toe. Lily let out an angry breath and Freya yelped in pain. They glared in the direction of the door to find the Marauders, led by the obnoxious Sirius Black who currently wore a goofy grin on his face.

"Hey there, ladies," Sirius began. "You seem to be having some difficulty with charms…you know I would always be willing to tutor you for a most reasonable price." He said slyly, winking at the two red heads who scoffed in reply. The girls turned their backs and slammed their luggage into place, ignoring the boys who had gathered in their compartment. Sirius watched in amusement for a second before loading up his and his mates bags and shoving them up and away so he could sit next to Lily. "You don't mind if we join you, right Evans?" She scooted closer to the window and farther away from Sirius.

"Actually, Black, we do." She spoke up, glaring at him. Sirius just grinned and flicked her nose causing her face to scrunch up.

"Well…that's too bad." He patted the seat next to him and motioned for Peter to sit. The smallest Marauder looked hesitant but finally relented after a moment. Remus was the next to sit down; choosing a safe spot near the compartment door in case anybody started a row. As Remus took his seat, Freya noticed that James didn't look up from the floor as he walked past them to sit by the window. Lily only stiffened slightly when he sat across from her, but James didn't attempt to meet her gaze or even look up. After a few moments of awkward silence, Sirius let out a long whistle. "This…this is a lot more awkward than I had expected it to be." Remus let out a short snort of laughter and Freya rolled her eyes. The train whistle blew three times to signal the departure of the students and still, no one in the compartment was talking. Freya had become fed up with her housemates' antics. She growled at them and began a mini-rant.

"Is anyone going to attempt to speak?" Sirius opened his mouth but Freya interrupted him. "Anyone besides Sirius?" He closed it and frowned at her. She sighed. "I will not sit through this train ride if all we're going to do is stare at each other." She stood up. "Lily and I are going to the loo. When we get back, I expect one of you four idiots to have something for us to talk about." Lily stood and followed Freya out who then proceeded to slam the door, causing Peter to jump.

Remus looked around at his friends and shook his head. "What have you gotten us into, Padfoot?"

Sirius looked taken aback. "What? I thought it be a good idea for Prongs and Evans to have some nice quality time on the train home. It's crucial for their growing love! Couldn't you tell how smitten Evans was when Prongsie walked in?" Peter laughed and James threw an old sweet he had discovered in his pocket at Sirius.

"Shut up, Padfoot," James grumbled. He ran his hands through his hair and let out a tired sigh. "I haven't the slightest idea of how I'm supposed to talk to Evans. She yelled her bloody head off at me the other day and now she won't even look at me! The thing with Snape wasn't even my fault! If she'd have just said she'd go out with me none of this would have happened and we'd be off snogging right now."

Remus rolled his eyes. "Prongs, Lily isn't like that and maybe you should just lay off of her for a bit and let everything cool down during summer. She just lost her best friend." James seemed to consider this for a second.

"But she's moving in with Freya, and I see Freya almost every day! How am I not supposed to see Lily along with her?"

"I'll keep you company of course, Prongs," Sirius spoke up, "that way you won't have to worry about any feisty red heads, yeah?" He winked at his friend who cracked a small smile. Just then the door slid open and in walked in said red heads. As they sat down, Freya began talking to Remus.

"Any luck with the talking situation?"

He smiled. "Actually, we were just talking about feisty red heads," he teased, "do you happen to know any?"

A smile flirted across Lily's face and Freya grinned. "I think I may be able to name a few," she joked.

The rest of the train ride carried on light heartedly and to Freya's surprise, and everyone else's, no rows took place. By the time they reached King's Cross Station it was already starting to get dark out. Freya and Lily stepped off the train and searched the platform for Nora and Daniel MacGregor, Freya's parents.

Right after Christmas break, Lily's parents had passed away. Petunia, being the only other person living in the house, sold it and moved in with her current boyfriend, Vernon Dursley. Freya had invited Lily to stay with her family that summer and offered any other time as well. She had already met Freya's parents and Lily felt she fit right in. She'd never admit it, but when she was younger, Lily had pretended to be related to the MacGregors. It was a small fantasy she would easily escape to when she had been bullied for being muggle-born.

Freya finally spotted her parents and walked over with Lily to meet them. "Mum! Dad! It's so good to see you again," she said hugging her parents. She pulled away and turned to face Lily. "You know Lily of course." Nora and Daniel nodded and smiled at her.

Nora pulled Lily into a hug as if she were her own child. "We are so sorry to hear about your loss, love. If there is anything more we can do for you don't hesitate to ask us." Not knowing what to say, Lily just smiled and nodded, hoping to look thankful. Mrs. MacGregor craned her neck up and looked around. "Now where is James? His parents had to take off just before you arrived. Ministry business if I had to guess," she mumbled to her husband. "He'll stay with us tonight." Lily paled a little bit.

"Errr…,"Freya began, glancing over at Lily. "I think he was just over there saying goodbye to his friends." Lily had a feeling this was a lie. Freya began to back away. "I'll just go grab him real fast and meet you outside, yeah?" Without waiting for a reply she took off to warn James.

Nora smiled at Lily. "I hope you don't mind it, Lily. James and his parents come 'round often during the summer." Lily faked a small smile and assured Mrs. MacGregor it was no problem, but on the inside, Lily felt like she was going to explode. Sure it was only one night but Merlin knows how much damage Potter could do in one night. She would just have to suck it up. After all, she was only a guest in the MacGregor house.

Mr. and Mrs. MacGregor had "borrowed" a muggle car that they would use to go to the Leaky Cauldron so that Lily, Freya, and James could use the Floo Network. Lily was stuffing her trunk and into the back of the car when Freya and James came jogging up to it.

"There you lot are!" James looked confused. "Wait, whose car is this?" Daniel MacGregor smiled.

"No need to worry, James. We'll make sure it's back where we got it before any of the muggles notice." A wicked grin spread across James' face and he let out a laugh. Lily, James and Freya crammed into the back seat, as Mr. MacGregor started the car. Freya made sure she was in the middle. The ride to the Leaky Cauldron was tense and awkward, but Nora had not picked up on the vibe coming from the three in the backseat so she chatted along occasionally earning a tiny acknowledgement from one of them. When they pulled up to The Leaky Cauldron, Lily practically leapt from the car in a scramble to get away from James.

"Okay, kids," Nora began. "Just take the Floo Network back to the house, and Daniel and I will meet you there shortly with all your things." She smiled reassuringly and pat them each on the shoulder before getting back into the car. When they entered, Freya went to grab a bag of Floo powder from Tom, the bar tender, leaving Lily and James standing next to the fire place awkwardly. When she returned, she held the bag out to James first who reached in and grabbed a handful. Freya shot him a look.  
>"Taking a bit more than needed, don't ya think?" James just shrugged and threw it into the fireplace before stepping in himself.<p>

"MacGregor Manor." He said clearly before disappearing. Freya held the bag out to Lily. Lily tentatively reached in and drew some out. She hated taking the Floo Networks and was already counting down the days until she could get her Apparition license. She threw in her dash of powder and stepped in after it, repeating the words as James had. She felt a tug and then she was speeding quickly away. Lily dared not to open her eyes, she was always afraid something terrible would happen if she did. After a second she felt her feet return to solid ground. Startled, and off balance, she tilted forward and threw her arms out to catch herself, but the impact with the ground never came. Instead she felt two strong hands catch her around the shoulders. She opened her eyes slightly to see a pair of shoes and some legs. The person in front of her was kneeling. Her eyes trailed up to the face of a smug looking James Potter.

"You should be more careful, Evans. I can't always be there to catch you." He grinned, "I wouldn't mind it if I was." His eyes twinkled with mischief and something else that Lily couldn't make out behind his glasses. She felt her face flush and went to remove herself from James' arms when another body came tumbling out of the fireplace, knocking Lily forward, which in turn caused James to rock back. Lily felt her face collide with something semi-hard and odd shaped as someone else's head smacked against her back, and the rest of the person's body trapped Lily's legs. James let out a strange sounding noise causing Lily to open her eyes and see her head was cradled in the middle of his lap. Her face had just been smashed onto James Potter's crotch. Lily's face turned even redder as she scrambled to get off the ground. She looked down to see his mouth had curled up into a naughty grin. He opened it to say something − something that was most likely idiotic and offending − but Lily's stern face stopped him. The person who had fallen through the fire place was Freya. She was watching the exchange between James and Lily curiously from her position on the floor.

"Was your head just on top of James'—,"

"Yes." Lily snapped. "Let's not talk about it. Ever." The grin on James' face grew bigger and Freya just shrugged and pushed herself up off the floor. Lily looked around, making sure she never made eye contact with James. They had landed in what seemed to be the library of the house. There were books everywhere; stacked on top of tables, on the floor, shelved from the bottom all the way to the top of the high ceiling. A wooden ladder could be seen at the far end of the circular room. "Wow…," Lily breathed. Freya was now standing next to Lily.

"The library is probably the best room in this place, aside from my room of course." Freya glanced around quickly. "Speaking of rooms, I'll show you where you will be staying this summer." She started to walk towards the door, motioning for Lily to follow. "I'm sure you can find your way to your room, Jem." She sent him a grin. "If you happen to get lost, just yell for a little and I'm sure we'll find you."

He snorted. "You're hilarious." He rolled his eyes and following them out. Freya led Lily down a series of different hallways and up numerous stair cases before coming to stop at a large wooden door. She pushed it open to reveal the nicest room Lily had every laid eyes on. Straight across from the entrance were glass doors that led onto a marble balcony. There was a four-poster bed that was pushed against one of the walls. It was made of a rich mahogany with a sweet canopy of white lace. There were pieces of matching furniture scattered strategically around the room, making it look like it was from a doll house. The walls were painted gold and the accent of the sheets were red…very Gryffindor. There was another door that Lily suspected led to the bathroom. She would have to check that out later.

"The house-elves will bring in your stuff when it gets here. See that bell over there," Freya asked pointing across the room to a small silver bell that rest on the nightstand next to the bed. "If you need anything, just ring it and one of the house-elves will come help you." Lily nodded and scanned around the room. "So… I was thinking maybe later tonight you might want to, go for a run in the gardens?" Said Freya, sending Lily a sly grin. At the end of their third year, Lily and Freya had been successful in becoming Animagi. Lily's Animagus form was a doe. Her identifying mark was that her eyes were an uncanny bright green, which was strange for any deer. Freya, on the other hand, was a small little fox. Unlike most red foxes, Freya's fur colour matched her human hair colour exactly making it darker than a natural fox's. They were both unregistered, and therefore had not told anybody.

It had been Freya's idea to become Animagi when one day in first year, Lily had come into the dormitory crying because of something a Slytherin had said to her. Lily believed she would never amount to anything the pureblood children could do and claimed that she and Freya had nothing in common. After that day, Freya had looked into Animagus transformations nonstop so that she would be able to make Lily feel that she was special, that the two of them shared something unbreakable, and she did, and Lily would be forever grateful to her for being there because Lily would not have been able to survive those first two years without her.

Lily smiled. "Yeah, that should be fun. You can show me around the grounds while we're at it."

"All right, well, one of the house elves will come get you when it's time for dinner. You should get comfy in here 'til then." Freya made to leave the room, pausing by the door. "I know this may not be home for you, Lily but, I think you'll really like it here if you give it a chance." She left after that, leaving Lily with her thoughts. Lily had always thought that living in the wizarding world would be so much better than having to go back to the muggle one she came from but, under the circumstances she lived in now, she'd give anything to go back to her mundane world just to see her family again—even Petunia.

She sighed and fell back onto her new bed. She must have drifted off because the next thing she knew something was touching her hand. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, turning towards the side of the bed to see a tiny creature with bat like ears, a small button nose and huge, round yellow eyes. The house elf gave Lily a tiny, unsure smile before speaking.

"Miss Lily," the tiny creature began, in a high pitched, unsure voice. "I is Tael. I have come to tell Miss that supper is now being served in the dining hall. Mistress Freya told Tael that Miss Lily may need assistance getting there, so Tael offered to help."

"Thank you, Tael. I would very much like for you to help me." Lily said politely getting out of bed and stretching quickly. She looked down at the house elf. Tael looked uncertain.

"Is it alright with Miss Lily to hold on to Tael's hand while Tael shows her the way?" Lily nodded and held out her hand for Tael to take. Once she did, they began to walk out of the room and through corridors, taking numerous flights of stairs before stopping on what seemed to be the first floor of the manor. Tael led Lily over to two large wooden doors before bowing to her. "This is the dining hall where Miss will have most of her meals." Lily smiled and thanked the elf who then apparated away with a crack.

Lily pushed open the doors and entered a long rectangular room with a table in the centre. Freya sat there alone with four other empty chairs. She looked up at the door and smiled to see Lily. "There's sleeping beauty. My parents will be joining us in a second, and hopefully so will Jem. He might have gotten lost; used to do it all the time when we were kids." She grinned to herself at the memory and pulled out the seat next to her, motioning for Lily to sit. They chatted aimlessly for a few minutes before James walked followed by Mr. and Mrs. MacGregor. Nora smiled at Lily.

"Good evening, love. I hope your room is to your liking," she asked sitting down at the end of the table.

Lily smiled and nodded. "It's really lovely. Kind of reminds me of the Gryffindor dorms."

Nora laughed. "Yes, many of the rooms have the same colour scheme. My husband thought it looked nice." She rolled her eyes and laughed with Lily. Once everyone was seated, James across from Lily and Freya and Daniel at the head of the table, the house elves began to bring out the different dishes. It reminded Lily of a smaller version of the Hogwarts welcoming feast. As they ate, Lily felt James' eyes boring into her skull and occasionally looked up to catch him staring at her. He never looked away, though. He would just hold her gaze, until she got tired of glaring at him and looked away. By the end of the meal, Lily felt the need to slam James' pretty face into his plate.

She felt Nora stand up on her left. "This has been really lovely, but Daniel and I should head up to bed now." She smiled at them as she and Mr. MacGregor walked towards the door. "You kids know that you don't have a curfew but we are trusting you to get to sleep at a reasonable time and don't try to sneak out." She pointedly looked at James who sent her a sheepish grin. Once they had left, Freya sprung up from her seat.

"Well, 'night, Jem. Lily and I will see you in the morning." She grabbed Lily's arm and made for the door before James could protest. The girls made their way up to Freya's room where they immediately flopped down onto the bed and burst into giggles. "Did you see his face at dinner?" Freya exclaimed. "He couldn't take his eyes off of you, Lily!"

Lily rolled her eyes. "Oh, trust me, I know. Merlin he is the most aggravating person I know! One would think after all the times I have rejected him he would have given up by now."

"Jem is just persistent. Especially when it comes to something he really wants." She winked at Lily who gagged. "You know… he isn't all that bad."

"Freya, how many times do we have to go over this? James was a complete prat to me for four years, and then out of nowhere he starts to fancy me and expects me to reciprocate his feelings when he is just an arrogant, bullying toe-rag with a head the size of an elephant? Sorry, but that's never going to happen. And he was also a huge arse to Severus. He still is!" She paused to catch her breath. "I can't believe Sev said that to me. He's only like that when the Marauders are around." Lily sighed and shook her head.

"I can't truthfully tell you that I ever liked Severus, but I tolerated him for you and we both know that he's always been infatuated with the Dark Arts and that infatuation has grown over the years. Lily, it wouldn't have been safe to continue being his friend anyway. If I remember correctly, you came to me complaining about him quite a lot last year."

"That's because the only thing he seemed to care to talk about was the damn Marauders! And you know he kept bringing up the fact that Remus is always ill during the full moon. I think he is starting to catch on to the fact that he is a werewolf, and with information like that, he could really hurt Remus." Freya and Lily had figured out Remus was a werewolf in fourth year but had never confronted him about it for his sake. "I know that cutting ties with Sev was probably for the best, but it still hurts. He was like my brother, Freya, and now…I can't even look at him."

Freya rolled over and looked at Lily. "We only have two years left at Hogwarts. I know that it may seem a lifetime away, but it's going to go by quick and I don't want you to waste it on missing somebody who isn't worth it. You've got me, and Remus and Marlene, and Paige and Sylvia. Lily, everybody at school loves you, except for maybe a couple of Slytherin prats but they don't matter! These next two years are going to be the best years we've had so far at Hogwarts. I promise." Lily looked at her friend and smiled.

"You're too good to me, Freya." Freya snorted and rolled off the bed. "I only do it because you're a perfect and that means perks." Lily went to smack her but she darted out of reach laughing. "C'mon, I think it's late enough for us to sneak out onto the grounds." The girls quietly walked down the corridors and staircases until they came to the backdoor. Once outside in the gardens, they took shelter in the maze. "Okay, once we transform follow me out of the other side of the maze. There is a forest that starts at the end. On the other side of the forest there's a really pretty loch. We can spend most of the night around there so we don't get caught." Lily nodded in understanding before transforming.

She felt her limbs elongating, and a short coat of brown fur begin to cover her body. Her ears felt like they were being stretched and her senses began to heighten, always checking for a predator. Once her transformation was over she looked around for Freya. A strange sort of yipping bark came from a few feet away and then Lily spotted the little red fox that was Freya. She had her ears pressed back against her head and she looked up at Lily with big silver eyes filled with mischief before darting away. Lily picked up speed to keep up with her but Freya's legs were much shorter and in no time, they were running side by side through the maze which seemed to be parting for them. After about a minute of running they came to the end of the maze where there was a short clearing before the edge of the forest. Freya nipped on one of Lily's hooves and then darted out into the forest.

They soon came to a large lake, or as Freya had called it, a loch. The water was black against the night sky and completely calm. The stars could sometimes be seen reflecting off of the surface when they hit it in the right way. It was stunning. The two walked through the rocky beach and into the water. Freya splashed around happily, getting Lily wet. The two spent most of the night running around and playing in the water, acting like children. By the time they got back to the house, the sun was already starting to rise. They had barely made it to Freya's room when they collapsed from exhaustion.

*†‡†*

It was nine o'clock in the morning and there had been no sign of Lily or Freya. James and Mr. and Mrs. MacGregor had finished eating and James was returning to his room to grab his things. On the way back, he decided to stop by Freya's room to see what the two girls had been up to the night before. He knocked on the door and even though there was no reply, he opened it anyway. He walked in and glanced around, everything seemed to be in place, and Freya usually kept a clean room. He saw two figures on the bed and walked over to find the two of them snuggled up together like children. James smiled at the sight and his eyes trailed over to Lily's face.

She looked peaceful sleeping there, he wanted more than anything to lean over and press his lips to her soft cheek, but he knew that would result in injury. Lily shifted over so that her back faced James who quickly moved to the other side of the bed allowing him the simple pleasure of seeing her face when it wasn't contorted in a look of anger.

He smiled to himself. She wasn't so threatening in her sleep. He watched her for a little while longer before he reached out a hand to trace her cheek. Her skin was irresistibly smooth under his slightly calloused hands. They had been worn out a bit after his many years of playing Quidditch. Her eyes fluttered open and she squinted them against the glare of the sunlight streaming through the windows.

"Potter?" She breathed, sounding mildly confused. "Is this a dream?"

He let out a soft laugh. "Yeah, go back to sleep."

She didn't need to be told twice. After a second, her breathing had turned even and she drifted off. James couldn't help himself anymore as he leaned down and pressed his lips softly against her forehead, letting them linger for a second before pulling back and leaving the room, closing the door behind him.

*†‡†*

Over the next couple of weeks, Lily and Freya tried their best to finish all the work they had been assigned over the break. Even through all their hard work, they still had two Transfiguration essays on the topic they would be starting to study in the fall, human transfiguration. The theories were all very complex and the girls found themselves spending their days holed up in the library, hidden within the stacks of books.

Unfortunately for Lily, James had visited quite frequently along with Sirius who had just moved in with the Potters that summer. Lily had recently met Charlus and Dorea Potter, both of whom were very kind, which led Lily to wonder how they could have raised someone like James. She had noted though, that James was beyond spoiled by his parents and that may have been a factor in his arrogant attitude. Lily had been quite successful in ignoring James but Sirius was another thorn in her foot. He seemed to pop out of thin air at the worst possible times, his only purpose in life to bother Lily or Freya. Whoever he deemed the most irritable at the time.

Freya and Lily were sitting in the library working when the doors burst open and in waltzed the Marauders. "There you girls are," exclaimed Sirius. "We've been looking for you everywhere. Wormtail here even suggested you may be dead! Imagine that." Lily rolled her eyes.

"I think I would rather be dead than have to spend time with you, Black."

Sirius clucked his tongue in disapproval and waggled his finger in her face. "Now, now, Evans, we don't need your cheek. The boys and I were thinking of going out to a see a muggle movie! They're showed in places called _kinemacs._ Remus has been telling us all about them and—," Sirius was cut off when Lily burst into a fit of giggles, which James found unbelievably adorable.

"What did you just call them, Black," she asked, trying to contain her laughter.

Sirius's brows furrowed in confusion. "_Kinemacs._ That's what they're called, right?" He turned to Remus who was shaking his head.

"Its cinemas, Padfoot, but I'll give you points for being fairly close."

Freya seemed to be interested. "All right, what's the show called?"

Sirius grinned at her. "_The Omen._ It's just come out in London and we think it be a fun experience. Your parents said it was all right s' long as you stay with us. Wouldn't want anything happening to you, lovelies."

Lily looked unsure. "Is this supposed to be a scary movie?"

"It's all right, Evans. If you get scared you can cuddle with me." A smiled spread across James' face and he opened up his arms, ready for a hug. Lily frowned.

"I don't need you to protect me, Potter."

James let out a laugh. "We'll see if you're saying that during the film."

After a little more convincing from Remus, Lily and Freya agreed to go to one of the late night showings. Peter's mother wouldn't allow him to see the movie so he was forced to turn in early, much to his delight. When the five of them arrived at the theatre, Lily was the one who went to the ticket booth to pay because she had the most experience with muggle money. After receiving their tickets and the boys bought three buckets of popcorn, they were able to go into the show room. James and Sirius wanted to sit in the front, but Lily informed them that it was much easier to watch the film from the back.

Lily's attempt to try and sit next to anybody but James failed and she was boxed in with James on her right and Remus on her left. Next to Remus was Freya and next to Freya was Sirius. James offered Lily popcorn as he tried to make conversation.

"So, did you come to the cinemas a lot before?"

Lily shook her head. "Petunia never really liked coming to see the films until she was older and by then she thought I was a freak. Severus never liked to watch them that much either, most of the time he couldn't afford it so I didn't really have anybody to go with."

James let out a small "oh" but didn't know how to carry on the conversation he so badly wanted to keep.

"Are you enjoying your summer so far," he asked, trying to keep Lily's attention.

"It's fine." She replied curtly, making a point of not looking at him.

"Do you like living with the MacGregors?"

"They're nice."

James let out a frustrated sigh and ran his hand through his hair. "Dammit, Evans! I'm just trying to talk to you." A group of people a few rows ahead of them turned around to shush James. He quickly apologized before turning back to Lily.

"I don't know what you're talking about, we were talking." She snapped at him in a whisper.

"But it's not the type of conversation I want and you know that."

She turned towards him. "Well what kind of conversation were you expecting?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe one you would actually engage in." He whisper yelled back.

"Sorry to break it to you, Potter but I'm not a house elf and I don't have to cater to your every want and need."

He narrowed his eyes at her. "That's not what I meant, and you know it."

"Do I?"

Over the course of their heated argument, they had moved closer to each other to the point where their noses almost touched. Lily didn't seem to notice but James certainly did. Her bright green eyes were lit by a familiar fire he only ever saw when they were having a row. His eyes trailed down to her delicious looking, perfectly shaped, red lips. When his eyes moved back up he saw that she was still glaring at him. Her cheeks were lightly flushed and her deep red locks of hair framed her face like a mane.

"You're a right vision when you're angry, Evans." He smiled at her. "I may kiss you." There was a scoff further down the aisle. The two turned to see Sirius and Freya grinning at them.

"If you two are done with your lovers spat, the movie looks like it's about to begin."

Lily's face began to heat up even more. She picked up a kernel of James' popcorn and threw it at Sirius. "It wasn't a lover's spat!"

Almost everybody in the theatre turned towards them and shushed Lily, making her face turn a shade darker than her hair. She sunk into her seat, trying to hide her face. She heard James chuckle to her right. She never had a stronger urge to punch him in his perfect face.

*†‡†*

During the duration of the film, James found himself watching Lily more than he watched the screen. He found it amusing that whenever there was a sudden sound, she would jump and grip tightly onto the arm rests. Or how she sometimes mumbled to herself about how stupid the characters acted. She was presently sunk low in her seat, peeping at the screen between her clasped hands. He glanced over at the rest of his friends finding that Remus had fallen asleep and Sirius and Freya had their heads bent together, talking in hushed voices. Sirius noticed James watching and looked up with a grin. He raised his hands and melded them together while gesturing to Lily. James stared at him, confused for a second before understanding dawned on him.

His eyes trailed back to Lily and he placed his opened hand on the arm rest. There was a full pause in the movie before the music began to crescendo and at the end sounded three loud bangs making Lily start. Her hand flew up to grab onto the arm rest but instead she found herself holding hands with James Potter. At first, she didn't register who she was holding hands with, just that there was a warm, comforting feeling seeping up her arm.

She looked over to see her fingers interlocked with James'. Her eyes trailed up to his face in disbelief. She saw he had a small smile on his face as he looked down at her. She yanked her hand out of his grasp and smacked him upside his head. She heard him yowl in pain but chose to ignore him. She sat facing forward, fuming in her seat. She didn't look at him for the rest of the movie.

*†‡†*

Freya and Sirius had been watching James and Lily with childish glee. Lily may out right say that she doesn't enjoy the company of James but Freya could tell that her body language meant she wanted nothing more than for him to scoop her up into his arms and hold her close. She felt Sirius' breath in her ear as he whispered to her.

"Do you think they'll ever get together?"

Freya had asked herself this question numerous times in the past, always coming up with the same indistinguishable answer. "In all honesty, I have no idea. There's obviously something between them − besides contempt − I think that James just needs to grow up a little more before Lily will go on a date with him." Freya turned her head slightly to gaze at Sirius. His grey eyes bore down into her silver ones, searching for something.

"And when will you agree to go on a date with me," he asked, his breath mixing with her own. "I want more with you than one snog session in a broom cupboard, Freya."

She smiled at him. "I'm sure you say that to all the girls you meet in broom cupboards, Sirius." He closed his eyes and groaned in false ecstasy.

"I love it when you say my name, MacGregor." He grinned down at her when he heard giggles erupt from her mouth. She smacked him playfully on the chest and he grabbed her hand, keeping it close to him. "Don't tell me you like it rough," he teased raising a devilish eye brow. "It might just send me over the edge."

She leaned in closer to him, her free hand wrapping around his neck and trailing up to his cheek, pulling him closer. A sexy growl emanated from her throat and she bit her lip looking up at him behind hooded eyes. Sirius' grin slipped off his face as he noticed their close proximity; their faces were almost touching and he felt his heart speed up in his chest. He closed his eyes in anticipation. Her lips had barely brushed his when he felt his face being pushed back. His eyes snapped open to see Freya's face contorting in laughter.

"You should have seen your face." She puckered her lips like a fish and shut her eyes leaning forward as if to kiss someone. Sirius slumped back into his chair, his face heating up. He hid his embarrassment with a joke.

"I know you want my body, MacGregor. There's no need to pretend." Freya laughed harder in reply.


	3. Chapter 3

Freya and Sirius sat alone by the fire in the Gryffindor common room. They had cuddled up on one of the large, plush red chairs; their heads bent together, as they whispered sweet nothings. Sirius kissed the tip of her nose, then her cheek, jaw and neck. He rested his head in the on her shoulder, his soft hair tickling her. She sighed as he began to plant chaste kisses all over.

"I love you." She said, running her hands up his back until they came to tangle in his hair. She pulled his head up and their eyes met for a second, communicating in a way that only lovers can. She tilted her head up to brush her lips lightly against his but he cupped her neck, pulling her closer, capturing her lips completely. His lips massaged hers in a sweet, slow kiss that could be felt from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. His tongue slipped inside of her mouth and sought out hers. They met in a swirl of passion and began to move together in familiar dance. He pulled away for breath, his mouth occupying itself with the expanse of her neck.

She let out a strangled moan. His lips soon found her sweet spot and he began to gently suck causing a wave of pleasure to course through her body. Freya gasped, her nails digging into his shoulders. "Sirius…" she breathed. One of his hands gripped tightly onto her hip as the other made its way up the side of her body, moving to softly cup her breast.

His lips detached from her neck and moved up to her ear. His deep laugh reverberated around the room. "You love too easy."

Freya was startled. She pulled away to look into his eyes. "What are you talking about, Sirius?" There was a malicious smirk on his once beautiful face. His hand moved away from her hip.

"You're a worthless little whore, Freya MacGregor. You actually thought I could love you?" He threw his head back in laughter. "I've just been using you for sex. Everybody knows you're just Sirius Black's little whore."

Freya felt an aching pain spread through her chest. "I trusted you." She pushed him off of her, in disgust. He fell back onto the floor, his laughter beginning to fade.

"I suppose that shows just how stupid and naïve you truly are." He stood up, his hand wrapped around his wand.

Freya's eyes narrowed. "What are you doing with that?" She reached for her own but couldn't find it. She began to search frantically.

"I'm loyal to only one person." Her eyes widened at his words. Dread seeped into her veins; she hoped he would not say whom she was thinking. "Lord Voldemort." He raised his wand. _"Crucio!"_ A red light burst from the tip of his wand and Freya felt as if somebody was tearing off her skin and burning her alive. She heard screams fill the room and after a second she processed that the screams were coming from her. Her brain felt fried as the white hot, searing pain came crashing down on her from every possible direction. After what felt like a lifetime, but may have only been seconds, the curse was lifted. Freya opened her eyes to find herself staring directly at Sirius' shoes. She had fallen over. He snarled down at her. "Get off the floor and die on your knees." Freya heard him but didn't move. She couldn't. He let out a frustrated growl and pointed his wand down at her. _"Avada Kedavra!"_ She closed her eyes as a jet of green light filled her vision, taking away her pain.

The next thing she knew, two hands were violently shaking her body in an attempt to rouse her. Freya's eyes flew open and she jolted awake, smacking foreheads with somebody. There was a loud groan as Lily rolled off of Freya's bed, cradling her head. Freya rolled out of bed quickly to see if Lily was okay. Lily quickly assured her that she was fine, and moved on to asking Freya why she had been screaming in her sleep.

She put a hand to her pounding forehead, lying back onto her bed. "I had the most bizarre dream…" she trailed off at the end, blushing as she remembered what exactly she had been dreaming about. "It was about Sirius."

Lily raised an eyebrow as she climbed up onto the bed to sit next to her friend. "Oh? And what was going on in this dream?"

"We were…okay we were snogging and I told him I loved him – which I don't – and then he turned all evil, pronouncing his loyalty to Who-Know-Who." Freya shuddered, remembering the look in his eyes. "He used the Cruciartus Curse on me, that's probably why I was screaming." Lily's eyes widened in horror.

"Do you remember what it felt like?" Freya shook her head. "Well what happened after that?"

"He pointed his wand at me and used the Killing Curse." Lily's jaw dropped slightly, a look of disbelief crossing her face. After a second, she began to shake her head.

"Sirius may be an arrogant prat but he would never do anything to hurt you, or any of us." Freya nodded in agreement but then shot Lily a strange look.

"How did you hear me scream? Your room isn't that close." A small grin spread across Lily's face.

"One of your house elves came running into my room while I was sleeping yelling hysterically about how you were thrashing around in your bed screaming. The poor thing looked like it was about to have a heart attack." Freya let out a small laugh.

"It was probably Tael. She's always worried I'm going to get myself killed."

"That's a valid reason to worry, seeing as how you always go looking for trouble."

Freya gasped and put a hand to her chest, faking pain. "You wound me, Lily. Trouble comes to me. The only person I know that goes looking for it is James, and he always seems to know how to get out of it, too." She sighed. "Speaking of James, he and Sirius are spending the night. Remus might come as well, but they said the details haven't been sorted yet." A Cheshire grin spread across her face. "We'll be camping in the forest out back."

"What?" Lily exclaimed. "Whose idea was that?"

"Sirius' actually." Freya looked up in thought. "I didn't know Sirius had ideas. Didn't even know he could really think either…"

Lily rolled her eyes, but her lips curled up into a smile. "Come get me when they arrive," she spoke, moving towards the door. "I'll be in my room."

Once the door had close behind Lily, Freya fell back onto her bed. She wanted to go back to sleep but feared the images that she might see if she closed her eyes. After a few minutes of staring pointlessly at the ceiling, she gathered the strength to get out of bed. She walked in to her bathroom and looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her long auburn red hair was in disarray, and she had two little bags under her eyes due to her lack of sleep. She stripped off and hoped into the shower, letting the hot water wash away her troubles. As she washed her hair and lathered her body with soap, she thought of her dream. She had been snogging with Sirius, and she had liked it. Most girls at Hogwarts knew the rumours; Sirius Black was a damned good kisser, but a shitty guy. He had snogged more girls than any bloke at school and prided himself in having done so. He had never committed to any girl and he seemed to refuse to take any sort of courting relationship seriously. And yet, Freya had been dreaming about him. Why couldn't she dream about sweet, smart Remus with the pretty blue-green eyes and small smiles that could make any girl's heart melt? She sighed as her mind wondered to the end of the dream. Sirius had killed her in the name of You-Know-Who. She had heard the rumours that some people in his family were Death Eaters, but Sirius was surely different. He was sorted into Gryffindor after all. She hadn't been paying attention to what she was doing until her scalp started to hurt and her skin turned red from rubbing. She shook her head at herself and got out, drying off. Freya dressing in a baggy white shirt that slipped off one of her shoulders and her favourite pair of jean shorts. She stared at her makeup for a few minutes before deciding she couldn't be bothered to put it on. She knotted her hair in a loose side braid as she walked down to the kitchen to grab a quick breakfast.

When she entered, she noticed the house elves weren't alone. Sirius sat on one of the counters, eating an apple as James sat talking to one of the house elves, Freya recognized her to be Navi. Sirius looked up at her when she entered, grinning. "MacGregor! How nice of you to join us on this fine Friday morning." He picked up an apple and tossed it to her. "You slept well I hope?" Freya dropped the apple and stared at him with disbelief. He couldn't possibly know anything, could he? After a second she shook herself out of her trance and picked up the fallen apple.

"Yeah, yeah, of course I did. Best sleep I've gotten in a long time." She looked back up at him. He raised an eyebrow, staring at her as if she had grown two heads.

"Where's Lily?" James asked, standing up and handing two pieces of buttered toast with raspberry jam over to her.

"Thank you, Jem. She's up in her room." She took a bite of the toast and walked towards the exit, motioning for them to follow. "She toed me to meet her dere when you 'rived."

The boys trailed behind her through the house, nearly knocking her over when she stopped at Lily's door. She rapped on it three times and waited. Nothing happened. She knocked again, this time calling Lily's name. When there was once again no answer, Freya turned the doorknob. She opened the door just wide enough to fit her head through. She swivelled it around, looking for her friend. No one seemed to be in the room, but a small sliver of yellow light could be seen coming from the bathroom door. She turned to James and Sirius. "Stay here, Lily might just be naked." James' eyes widened behind his glasses and he tried to peek into her room. Freya smacked him once before entering, closing the door and locking it behind her. "Lily?" She called again. There was a splashing noise from the bathroom and Freya opened the door to see her sitting in the oversized tub at the far end of the room, clouds of bubbles covering every surface within a meter of the tub. Lily smiled sheepishly.

"I may have gotten a little bit carried away with the bubbles."

Freya let out a snort of laughter. "A little bit?"

"Okay a lot, but they smell nice!"

"Right well, when do you think you'll be out?"

"In a minute, I'm starting to prune. Are the boys here yet?" Freya nodded. "All right, I'll just get dressed real quick and meet you down in the gardens, yeah?" Lily smiled for a second but then her eyes darted behind her friend and her smile slipped from her face as she let out a shriek of anger and embarrassment. Freya turned around when she heard a wolf whistle.

"Nice bathroom, Evans, although it's a little hard to see, being covered with bubbles and all." A sly smile spread across James' previously bewildered face.

"Get out! Both of you get out," Lily yelled, sinking lower into the tub. Freya attempted to push the boys towards the door, but they wouldn't budge.

Sirius pouted as he fought off Freya. "But, Evans, that ruins all of our fun! And Prongs here is simply dying to join you in that tub." He winked and pointed down to the growing bulge in his friend's trousers. James' face flushed and he smacked the back of Sirius' head.

Lily's red face could be seen amongst the ivory bubbles. "I SAID GET _OUT_!" Freya shoved the two idiots towards the door, through her room and out into the hall before Lily lost control and jinxed them, resulting in her expulsion from Hogwarts.

"How the hell did you manage to get in?" She questioned. A goofy grin turned up the corners of Sirius and James' mouths.

"The house elves were more than happy to help when we told them we needed to get into the room." James explained. Freya smacked her forehead. She had completely forgotten about the house elves! She proceeded to push them down the hall.

"Lily is going to meet us in the gardens." She looked at James. "Take care of that before she gets down." His grin fell from his face, which proceeded to blush more before he punched Sirius in the arm.

"Oi! What was that for?" Sirius rubbed his arm.

"Why the hell did you go and point it out!"

"Oh like Evans wasn't going to notice."

Freya came between the two best friends. "Enough! You're both acting like children." She grabbed onto their ears and dragged them down to the gardens where she threw them down onto a bench. "Sit here and don't move." She ordered with a very McGonagall look on her face.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "What do we look like, dogs?" He shared a secret grin with James.

"If you don't want to be treated like a dog then don't act like one." She crossed her arms and sat across from them, watching Sirius warily as he gave her his most charming smile. After what seemed like a lifetime of glaring, Lily came out, a displeased look plastered on her face. Freya stood up. "Finally," she exclaimed, joining arms with her friend.

Lily glanced over at James and Sirius. "Where's Remus?"

"His mom hasn't been feeling well this past week, so he stayed home to take care of her." Sirius covered quickly. Freya and Lily glanced at each other knowingly; the full moon had been yesterday. The Marauders didn't think the girls knew Remus was a werewolf.

"Right…" Lily said. "Well I hope she gets better."

James smiled. "We'll be sure to tell her." He and Sirius stood up, towering over the short red heads. "Merlin, you two are about the same size as the average house elf."

Lily bristled and glared up at him. "I'll have you know, James Potter, that I'm two whole inches taller than Freya."

Freya gasped and whacked her friend in the stomach. "No you're not! I'm five foot and six inches." James scoffed and Freya rolled her eyes. "Okay, five foot five, but who cares about details?"

James patted the top of her head. "Some people just aren't as fortunate as others when it comes to looks." Freya scowled and began to swot away his hand.

"You would be the ugliest girl!"

James glared down at her. "Would not!"

"Would too! Your hair looks like a rat's nest." He ran his hand through his hair self-consciously.

"Girls love my hair." He said it in a way that sounded like he was reassuring himself.

Lily snorted, crossing her arms over her chest. "Actually, it makes you look like a prat."

James grinned at her. "You're just too proud to admit you fantasize about playing with it, Evans." Her eyes narrowed and she stood on her tippy toes to get up into his face, but her eyes-only came to about his nose.

"You wish, Potter." They stared at each other until Sirius cleared his throat.

"Would you two please take out your sexual frustration later?" Lily went to object but Sirius carried on, turning to Freya. "Thank you, now, what have you in-store for us today, MacGregor?"

She smiled sheepishly. "Well I was thinking that maybe we could play hide-and-go-seek, and then get ice cream and then after ice cream we could make those s'mores on a campfire," Freya looked genuinely excited. "But I thought there was going to be more people. It may not be as fun with just the four of us."

Sirius patted her shoulder. "I think it sounds like a grand idea." Freya beamed.

Lily scowled at him. "You're just saying that because you want to shag her, Black."

James burst into laughter. "The truest statement I've heard all day."

Sirius just smirked. "I'm not going to deny it. You would be a great shag, MacGregor." He winked at her.

"I think I'll take that as a compliment." She clasped her hands together. "Now, is it okay with everybody to play hide and see? I've really wanted to for awhile." She looked at Lily with a hopeful look in her silver eyes.

Lily shrugged. "Its fine with me. I haven't played that game since I was little, so this should be fun." Freya turned to James with big eyes.

"Well how could I ever say no to a face like that?" He joked. "What are the rules?"

"You can only hide in the gardens. The labyrinth in the French garden is off limits because it changes too much. No house and no woods and no magic. Which means you can't ask the house elves for help. The person counting has to count to 50, okay?" Without waiting for a reply she covered Sirius' eyes with her hand. "Sirius goes first 'cause he's the eldest." She shooed Lily and James away; the two took off in opposite directions.

Sirius was complaining. "That's not fair! I can't decide my date of birth!" Freya giggled.

"Be a big boy and suck it up." Sirius continued to grumble. Freya rolled her eyes as she leaned over and pecked his cheek before moving to whisper in his ear. "Don't take too long to find me." His mouth continued to move but no noise came out. She removed her hand from his eyes and backed away slowly before taking off towards the Spanish garden. She made her way over to one of the large hedges, almost slipping in the wet grass. She got low to the ground, hoping Sirius would be too daft to look inside of the plants. After a few more minutes of silence there was a yell.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Freya waited, trying not to move around too much. She thought her hiding spot was pretty good. It was silent in the gardens, only the sound of animals could be heard when very masculine yelling started up. "You can't do that you prat! I've already found you! Prongs! Prongs get back here! Come here and loose like a man!" Freya chuckled at their immaturity. She stopped breathing when a pair of feet ran past. James had a good lead on Sirius, but the latter had begun to catch up to his friend. "I've got you now, arse hat." There was a chorus of grunting and scuffling on the floor as Sirius tackled James.

"Merlin, Padfoot. You're the same weight as a bloody Hippogriff." James sounded winded.

"Do not! I've got a great figure." There was laughter and Freya peeked around the leaves to see the two boys getting off the ground. Sirius looked around. "Do you think anyone's round here?"

"I don't know about Freya but Lily went towards the French garden. It's back this way." James started walking away but Sirius stopped him.

"Look." He pointed to the ground on Freya's left. "Footprints." Freya cursed at herself mentally; how could she forget about her little slip in the grass? James and Sirius would discover her hiding spot any minute now. If she wanted to get away she would have to run, but both boys were on the Quidditch team, how far would she get? She would have to risk it to find out. Freya got up and maneuvered her way out of the side of the hedge. She had just gotten out of the tangle of branches when a pair of arms wrapped around her middle pulling her back. Freya squealed with laughter as Sirius spun her around in his arms to bring them face-to-face. He grinned like a little boy who had just won a first place trophy. "Gotcha."

James stuck a finger in his mouth and began to gag. "Let's just find Evans and see if she'd be up to cuddling with me." The trio walked to the French garden in search of the last player. They had just walked past the lilies when Freya spotted something amiss. There was a red head of hair inconspicuously poking out from the flowerbed. Freya tugged on Sirius' arm and pointed it out. He grinned and went up behind Lily, grabbing her under the shoulders and pulling her out. She laughed and tried to wiggle out of his grasp, but he held on tight to her. "Throw her here, Padfoot." James held out his arms as if to catch Lily. Sirius dropped the squirming girl into James' arms. Lily stopped laughing and scrunched up her nose. James just grinned. "What? Do I smell bad or something, Evans?" Lily jumped out of his grasp.

Sirius let out a barking laugh. "When do you ever smell good, Prongs?"

The four continued to play the game until evening. The sun had just started to set when they arrived at the clearing in the forest where they had decided to pitch their tent. Freya, Sirius, and James looked at the tent instructions with confusion written on their faces. Lily watched in amusement for a while before finally going in and helping them.

"Why do muggle contraptions always have to be so complicated?" James said after they had successfully put it up.

One of the house elves had started a small fire and left a tray of sticks, graham crackers, chocolates, and fluffy marshmallows for them to make their s'mores. Freya was sitting in a small chair by the fire, making her first s'more. She had a giddy smile on her face as she watched the white sweet begin to turn crispy brown. She stacked it on top of the chocolate and crackers, pushing it down so that the melted marshmallow oozed onto her fingers.

Sirius was looking down at his s'more with narrowed eyes. "For such a small snack, it sure is a hell of a lot of trouble. It's making my fingers all sticky." He held up his marshmallow-covered hand.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Just enjoy the food before I put one of these melted sweets in your precious hair." Sirius scooted farther away from her.

Freya looked up at Lily. "What else do muggles do when they go camping?"

Lily thought about this. "Well, I've never been camping before with my family, Petunia would have thrown a fit. But sometimes they sing songs or tell scary stories." She glanced at James and Sirius. "But maybe we shouldn't sing."

"I'll have you know," began James. "That I am a great singer, Evans."

Sirius and Freya laughed. "Yeah, if you think a dying moose yelling is a pleasant sound."

When the fire had died down and the s'mores had run out, Sirius stood up and stretched. "I'm about ready to turn in. I need beauty sleep to look this good every day." He opened the tent flap, but froze just after his head had gone in. He pulled it out, closed the flap, waited a minute and then opened it again, peering inside. "Why is this tent so small?"

"Because it's a muggle tent and we haven't put an Engorgement Charm on it."

Sirius looked bewildered. "It's tiny!"

"Are you joking, Sirius? It says on the box it fits six grown men. That should be big enough for the four of us." He continued to complain. "Would you rather sleep outside?" He shook his head. "Then stop acting like a four year old." Freya marched into the tent; grabbed James and Sirius' sleep wear and tossed it to them. "You two change out here while Lily and I change in there."

"Why can't we just all change together?" James suggested with a smile.

Lily gave him a look. "Do you really need that question to be answered?" James shrugged and took off his shirt. Throwing it to Lily. She caught it and looked at him strangely. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Wear it of course. You'll look good in it." She frowned and threw it back at him.

"I don't want your nasty clothes, Potter." She snapped at him before disappearing into the tent with Freya close behind.

Sirius and James changed quickly, but they were often distracted by the noises coming from the tent. There was a lot of giggling and shuffling going on. After a few more moments, Freya poked her head out. She wore a grin on her face.

"Okay, you guys can come in." James went in first. Inside, the tent was lit up by a muggle contraption called a flashlight, or as Lily had said, a torch. James frowned when he saw the sleeping arrangements; Lily was at the far end of the tent. He sat down next to Freya. After Sirius climbed in and closed up the entrance nice and tight, Freya switched off the torch, plunging them into the darkness. "Well, night everyone." Sirius grumbled about having to sleep next to a bloke.

James stared up at the top of the tent, he hadn't taken off his glasses, he had a plan. After a little while, Sirius' breath turned even and he began to lightly mumble to himself, which meant that he had fallen asleep. James rolled onto his side to face Freya. "Switch places with me," he whispered.

Freya looked, unsure. "Lily will kill me."

"I'll tell her that I moved you over when you were asleep." She contemplated this.

"All right, roll over." She climbed over James as he rolled over, moving towards Lily. James took off his glasses and placed them by his pillow.

Lily's chest rose and fell rhythmically, and she had a peaceful look on her face. James tentatively put a hand on her waist, watching for her reaction. When she didn't do anything, he wrapped his arm around her fully, pulling her sleeping form against him so that her back was pressed to his chest, and they shared the same blanket. Lily smelled like freshly picked flowers and her sugary scented hair tickled James' senses. It felt nice to hold her like this, he thought. It felt more than nice, it felt undeniably right. Why couldn't she see that? He was pulled out of his thoughts when she started to stir. James froze. Lily didn't open her eyes and begin to yell at James like he had expected her to do, instead she turned around and nestled her head in the crook between his neck and shoulder, sighing contently. One of her small hands came up and rested against his chest, directly over his heart. A huge smile over took James' features as he drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the girl in his arms.

*†‡†*

Freya and James had just switched places and she now stared at Sirius' back. She moved closer to him and wrapped her arms around his middle placing her head between his shoulders. She felt him tense up before he turned around to face her. Once he laid eyes on her, he let out a sigh of relief.

"For a second there I thought you were Prongs." He whispered.

Freya giggled quietly. "Nah, just me."

Sirius smiled. "Just you." He snaked his arms around her, pulling her close as his hands trailed down her back to her bum. Freya smacked his arm playfully as he grinned.

"What?" He asked in false confusion.

"Keep your hands away from my bum." She joked.

His eyes lit up. "I just can't get enough of you." His hand moved to her cheek as he gazed down into her eyes, grey meeting silver.

"You should go to bed." She whispered, afraid if she let him get any farther, they'd kiss and after that nothing would be the same.

"But I'm wide awake."

Sirius dipped his head down, as if to kiss her, but she ducked hers and placed it on his chest. She felt him stiffen again, but soon he relaxed, settling for placing a lingering kiss on her forehead.

How could this Sirius be the same one from the dream she had experienced the night before? It was impossible. He may not always act like it but Sirius was a gentle soul, and he was caring and brave and unbelievably loyal. He wouldn't hurt her, at least not in that way, but Freya knew his reputation and knew she was stupid for thinking she could change him. Every girl at Hogwarts believed that they would be the one to tame Sirius Black, but Freya wouldn't be so naïve. She had to stop getting close to him, but she couldn't help it. She was a moth and he was the brightest flame, and she found herself going back to him even though she knew it would burn her, hurt her, kill her. She placed a kiss to the base of his neck, right between his collarbones.

"I'm sorry."

*†‡†*

Sirius lay wide-awake thinking of what Freya had said. She had apologised, but for what he didn't know.

*†‡†*

The full month of July had passed fairly quickly in Lily's mind for she had been having an unrivalled amount of fun with Freya. The girls had spent nights running wild in the forest and they had spent mornings dancing in the flowers. They were currently at the loch, sitting on one of the large stones that jutted out of the water. They had received their Hogwarts letters that morning and because of that, a feeling of anxiousness had crept up on them. They would be taking NEWT level classes that year. While the impending doom of school was still present in the back of Lily's mind, most of her thoughts were elsewhere.

She enjoyed living with the MacGregors. She was spending the summer carefree and wild in this manor so much like a sanctuary that… she had forgotten to think of her parents. She had visited their gravesite at the beginning of July, but never went back to visit again. The guilt of being happy when she knew she 'ought to be sad had begun to eat away at Lily. She played with her fingers, her eyes staring down at her lap.

"Freya, am I a bad person for being happy?" Lily didn't see it, but Freya's eyebrows shot up.

"What kind of a question is that?"

Lily sighed, twiddling her thumbs. "My parents are dead, and I'm running around in the wizard world acting like nothing is wrong. I have barely thought of them since the beginning of summer. I only visited their graves once! I'm a terrible daughter." Lily hid her face in her hands at the realization.

She heard Freya climb over the large rock to sit closer on Lily's left side. "Listen to me," she grabbed Lily's wrist and lowered her hands from her face. She looked up into Freya's intense, silver eyes. "You are not a terrible daughter. Your parents loved you and they would have wanted you to be happy." She paused, breathing in deeply before continuing. "Everybody dies, Lily. One day, I'm going to die, my parents are going to die. Even Dumbledore is going to die. We can't protect our loved ones from death and the sooner we realise that, the easier it will be to accept the fact that it's inevitable and instead of mourning their loss, we can celebrate their life." She reached up and wiped a stray tear from Lily's face. "When the sunsets on one horizon, remember that it's rising on another." Lily's resolve broke as she wrapped her arms around Freya's waist and cried onto her shoulder. She heard her sigh. "You know, I used to be really shit at comforting people, but I think that went pretty well, yeah?" Lily laughed through her tears.

Once she had calmed down a bit, she looked up at her friend. "Am I a burden?"

Freya laughed and wrapped her arms tighter around Lily. "Nah, you're not anything but a blessing to me, love." She stood up, bringing Lily with her. "C'mon we should head back to the house for some lunch." They hopped off the rock and walked out of the shallow tide pool, back onto the rocky beach. The walk back to the house was filled with more laughs than it was with tears and for that, Lily was grateful.

*†‡†*

That evening, Lily and the MacGregors went to the Potter's house for supper. Nora had told the girls at lunch to dress nicely and so for the rest afternoon Freya and Lily had rummaged around in each other's closets trying to find something to wear for the other. In the end, Lily picked out a white sundress with off the shoulder sleeves for Freya. It ended just above her knees; her feet clad in a pair of brown flats. Lily pulled Freya's hair back into a half-up half-down look that matched her own. While Lily had gone for a cute, classy look for her friend, Freya had gone for something a little bit more revealing. She had picked out a midnight blue sundress that ended mid-thigh; it was held up only by two thin straps. Sparkly silver sandals adorned her pale feet making them look even paler. When the girls stood side by side in the mirror, anybody who didn't know them would think they were sisters.

They arrived at the Potter's house at exactly 6:00 p.m. via side-along Apparation. Freya quickly knocked on the door. After a moment, it swung open to reveal a head of messy black hair. James ran a hand over his head quickly, attempting to tame his wild locks, but as always they remained sticking up everywhere. He gave a sheepish grin to Nora and Daniel as he ushered them into the foyer. Mrs MacGregor leaned down to kiss James on both cheeks before moving down the hall, followed by her husband. Lily stood by awkwardly as Freya and James embraced quickly. When the two of them pulled away James sent a winning grin at Lily. "Evans," he said nodding at her. Lily let out a very unladylike grunt in reply. James led them down the hall to the dining room where, everybody else was situated. Sirius' mouth curled in a cheeky grin and he waved at them from his seat at the table.

Mrs Potter looked up, a smile flitting across her worn face. She stood up and walked over, pulling Freya into a tight embrace. "Freya, how nice to see you again, dear." She let go of her and took a step back to examine her. "You look lovely, how have you been? Enjoying your time away from school?" Freya nodded.

"It's been a really fun summer with Lily around. You've met Lily before right, Mrs Potter?" Dorea looked at Lily with a smile.

"Oh, of course," she exclaimed taking Lily into her arms. "I've heard so much about Lily Evans." She pulled away and held her at arms-length as she did with Freya. "James has said so much about you." Mrs Potter's eyes trailed up Lily's body. "He certainly hasn't left out how beautiful you are."

"Mom!" James' face had gone red from his mother's embarrassment. Freya giggled and Dorea winked at Lily.

"Come sit down," she said pulling Lily along to sit across from Sirius. "Supper is just about to start." Once everyone was seated, Mr Potter rang a silver bell in the middle of the table and eight house elves cracked into the room carry all sorts of different dishes.

Lily glanced up at Sirius to see that he had piled mounds of ham onto his plate, shaking the salt on top as if his life depended on it. He could be such a dog sometimes. Lily looked around unsure of what to eat. She settled for scooping a little bit of everything on to her plate. James and Sirius kept shooting glances at each other and whispering things out of the side of their mouths. It was starting to annoy Lily.

"So Lily," spoke up Mr Potter from the other end of the table. "What classes will you be taking next year?"

"Potions, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Transfigurations, Herbology, Charms, and Arithmancy. Freya and I are taking the same classes."

"That's a good set of classes to take," he commented. "What field of work would you want to go into after you finish Hogwarts?"

"Well, I have narrowed it down between an Auror and a Healer, they require the same amount of Newts and I like both of them a great deal. Hopefully I can make a choice by the end of my seventh year."

Mr Potter nodded. "Those are both great fields to go into. Mr MacGregor and I used to be partners in our days at the Auror Office." He grinned at his old friend. "Hopefully our children can carry on our legacy, eh?" He smiled warmly at James and Freya the latter of the two looked like she had something stuck in her throat but forced a smile anyway. James had a boyish smile on his face.

"The first thing I'm going to do after Hogwarts is apply for Auror Training with Sirius." Mr Potter smiled at his son.

"That's my boy." He said proudly. Freya was looking down at her plate as if she was about to be sick. Lily nudged her in the side with her elbow, causing her to look up. They made eye contact and Freya mouthed "Later".

Lily faced forward again and caught Sirius staring at them. He raised a questioning eyebrow, but Lily just glared at him and shook her head. He shrugged and went back to eating his dinner. She glanced over to his right to look at James who had been watching her. He smiled when their eyes met but Lily quickly averted her gaze.

*†‡†*

After dinner had finished, the boys took off upstairs straight away. Freya led Lily up to one of the studies so they could talk in private. As soon as Freya had closed the door behind her, Lily pounced like a concerned mother bear.

"What's wrong? Is everything all right? Talk to me."

"Merlin, Lily, at least let me it down."

She backed off a little. "Right, sorry, I'm just worried." The girls sat down on the couch and Freya began to talk.

"My parents want me to be an Auror and I've always been absolutely okay with that, but as I've grown up, I feel so much more pressure coming down to rest on my shoulders." She paused. "They want me to be like they were, but I don't know if that's what I want. I'm not nearly as talented as you or James or my parents and—,"

"Freya, you're a complete idiot if you don't think you're talented. You're one of the most powerful witches I know. You were the always the first one in Defence Against the Dark Arts to get the spells right, and you always did the best on the practicals." Lily smiled at her. "Everybody always tells me how good I am at Charms, but I wouldn't be half as good as I am without you." She poked her friend in the chest. "Your parents have an endless amount of things to be proud of you for."

Freya gave her a small smile "Thanks, Nugget." Lily rolled her eyes.

"You know how much I dislike that nickname."

"Its better than Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot or Prongs." The girls shared a smile and giggled.

Lily's brow furrowed. "I can see how they got Moony for Remus, but where do you think all the other nicknames are from?"

Freya shrugged. "The hell if I know. Probably made them up when they were drunk." Lily giggled.

"While you think of that, I need to use the loo." Lily stood up and made for the door as Freya quickly gave directions. She made her way down the long hall but stopped when she heard voices coming from a door at the end. She looked around to see if anybody was around; the hall was empty save for a few sleeping pictures. Lily quietly crept up to the door and pressed her ear against it, straining to make out what the voices behind the door were saying.

"I don't know, Padfoot, she drives me mad. I can't seem to act normal around her and whenever she's near, I don't think straight; I can't." It was James. Lily guessed he was talking to Sirius but about whom, she didn't know.

"I don't know what to tell you, Prongs. Remus is the one who is good at giving advice on girls. Which is funny considering he has never had a girlfriend."

She heard a sigh. "I wish I could go back in time and make a better impression on her." There was a pause. "Are you still trying to snog Freya?"

Sirius' deep laugh sounded through the door. "Yeah I guess you could say that, but things with my family are getting complicated and I haven't really been able to think of girls. I'm sure you know that my mother and father have been sending me Howlers since I left the house." Lily could picture Sirius leaning back on his chair and crossing his arms like he so often did in class. "They're complete nutters, the lot of them. I can't believe Regulus lets them control him the way he does. They always go on about how he's a better son. Like I should care I'm a disappointment."

"Padfoot, you know it's not inhuman to want to have your parents' approval."

"Yeah but he shouldn't have to do the things he does to get it," Sirius snarled. "You don't know what it was like, having to live in that house." There was a long pause. "I'm sorry for snapping, Prongs. You and you're parents have been nothing but gracious and I've been a complete prat."

"'Course you haven't! Mum and Dad love you, and Mum's been asking for the past three years when you were going to come move in with us. You know she was a Black, too."

"I'm just glad she didn't turn out like the rest of my mucked up family. Thanks for listening…" Lily was sure he said more but she had backed out of hearing range, feeling uncomfortable for eavesdropping on the conversation.

Once she had returned to the room after visiting the loo, she told Freya everything she had heard through the door. She had a thoughtful look on her face. She started listing random facts she knew about Regulus and the rest of the Black family

"The oh so Noble and Most Ancient House of Black." She let out a snort. "Is full of inbred mongrels and pure-blood maniacs. They're one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight." Freya rolled her eyes. "It's a load of tosh if you ask me."

"What's the Sacred Twenty-Eight?"

"It's just a dumb name that was given to twenty-eight pure-blood families who have never had any connections with muggles or muggle-born wizards."

Lily looked confused. "But you and James are from old pure-blood families… why are your names not on the list."

"Most likely because the person who made the list thought we had some ties with muggles. It doesn't matter much to us anyway. My mother's family is on the list though: Macmillan."

"Oh, well, you were saying?"

"Right! Regulus Black is two years younger than us. He was sorted into Slytherin. He just started playing Seeker for their Quidditch team last year in his third year. He mostly hangs around with Snape and the kids of the rumoured Death Eaters."

"Wait?" Lily stopped her. "He hangs around with Severus and who?" Freya looked at her curiously.

"Didn't you know?"

Lily shook her head in disbelief. "I always knew they were bad kids but I didn't realise their parents were Death Eaters."

"Well the Ministry doesn't know for sure, but there are rumours about who is really a supporter of You-Know-Who and who isn't."

"Doesn't the Ministry do anything to these people?"

Freya shrugged. "Some of the families have too much power. You know how corrupt it's gotten. They just pay them off, but sometimes the Ministry will search the houses, but they never find anything."

"Is anybody in Sirius' family a rumoured Death Eater?" Lily asked.

"Yes, but not his mum or dad. I'm not sure if Regulus is, he may be too young but Bellatrix Lestrange is supposed to be absolutely crazy. Her and her husband Rodolphus. The Malfoy family is also known to support You-Know-Who but they have too much power and so nobody can really do anything about it."

"That's bollocks! How can they not do anything? People will die and all they care about is getting money?" Lily's face wore a look of outrage.

"That's just how the Wizarding World works I guess."

"Well it's complete nonsense!"

"It's also reality, Lily. That's the world we're going to have to live in after we graduate from Hogwarts. Hopefully the war will be over by then."

There was a pregnant pause. "Do you think the war will be over by then?" Lily asked, somewhat hopefully.

"I honestly have no idea, with the way things are looking right now, this war is going to go on forever."

*†‡†*

When the MacGregors and Lily were leaving, James and Sirius came down to say goodbye, telling the girls the next time they would meet would be on the train to Hogwarts. Lily was relieved. She looked over at Sirius who seemed to be his usual arrogant, loony self but she couldn't help but remember the conversation she had overheard.

He sent her a grin. "Why are you staring at me?" Going against her nature towards Sirius, she closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. He tensed up but after a moment he relaxed and hugged her back. "Don't tell me you fancy me, Evans. Prongs would skin me alive."

Lily smiled. "Nope, you just looked like you could use a hug."

"Yes well it was a very nice hug…thank you."

Lily walked towards the door with everybody else. "Don't expect another one, Black."

Sirius chortled. "I'll continue to dream then." She sent him a smile and disappeared out the door with Freya. James was giving Sirius a look. "What?"

"Why did she give you a hug?" Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Maybe because I don't cuddle up to her while she is sleeping and doesn't know what is going."

James blushed. "What Evans doesn't know won't hurt her. And hey, she didn't complain."

"That's because she was unconscious."

The two made their way back up the stairs, continuing to banter like an old, married couple.


	4. Chapter 4

Lily woke up with a start; somebody was shaking her. "Lily, if you don't get up we are going to miss the perfects' meeting." Her eyes opened slightly to see Remus staring down at her. She turned her head and ignored him, mumbling on about needing more sleep. She and Freya had stayed up all night making sure all their things were packed, checking to ensure that they had enough money and finally looking through all their homework. Remus sighed. "I was really hoping it wasn't going to come to this." He picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. For someone who looked tired and weak all the time, Remus was actually pretty strong.

Lily smiled and laughed. "Alright, alright, I'm up, let me down you giant troll." He placed her back on the ground. Lily looked down at herself. "I should have gotten more sleep. I probably look like a right mess."

Remus pulled her out into the hall. "You look fine, Lily, relax." The two walked towards the front of the train to the perfects' carriage. Frank Longbottom and Alice Prewett stood at the front of the compartment talking. Lily smiled and bounded over to the couple. Frank and Alice had already been dating for two and a half years. The pair seemed to be inseparable; Lily thought it was unbelievably cute.

"Congratulations! I always knew you two would be Head Boy and Girl." She hugged them both.

"Thank you, Lily. I know for sure you'll get it next year. Dumbledore would be daft if he didn't pick you for Head Girl." Alice pulled back from the hug and smiled at her. Alice had a cute round face with girly blue eyes. Her face was outlined by her short blonde hair. Frank on the other hand was tall with dark brown hair and matching eyes. He had a strong build; his large hands were sometimes a bit awkward for he played Keeper for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. He was smiling at her.

"Thanks, Lily, but you had better take a seat, the meeting will be starting soon." She smiled and whispered to Alice about talking later before quickly taking a seat next to Remus. "Alright, everybody. I'm sure you all know who we are, but for those you don't, I'm Frank Longbottom and this is Alice Prewett and we will be Head Boy and Girl for this school year at Hogwarts." There was a short pause for applause, where everybody clapped, except for two of the Slytherins who had scowls on their faces. "To start things off we would like to welcome all new fifth year students. Congrats on becoming a perfect, it will be hard work, but I'm sure you will enjoy it." Frank and Alice smiled at the new students who all looked happy but embarrassed to be called out on their first day. The meeting continued on with Frank and Alice quickly discussing how there would be another meeting soon about weekly patrol schedules as well as Quidditch practices and games and Hogsmeade weekends. The meeting was concluded by Alice handing out a piece of paper with the train patrol times and partners. Lily had been paired with Mason Davies, a sixth year Ravenclaw perfect. They were scheduled to patrol first. Mason was the twin brother of Jonathan Davies, one of the beaters for the Gryffindor Quidditch team alongside Sirius. Lily had never really associated with Mason but when she looked up and saw him she questioned her intelligence and all other reasoning.

Mason looked to be a bit taller than her with a nice even build. Lily could see he had bronze, shaggy hair and a big smile. She couldn't make out the colour of his eyes, but was sure it was just as pretty as the rest of him. She stood up and walked over to him.

"Mason Davies…?" She asked shyly, tucking a strand of dark wine red hair behind her ear. He grinned at her. Lily noted he had really nice teeth.

"Lily Evans." He stood up, towering over her. "We have patrols together, don't we?" She nodded quickly. "Sounds good to me; let's go." He escorted her to the door where once in the hall they began their patrol. "We've had a couple of classes over the years but I've never gotten the full pleasure of being properly introduced to you." He held out his hand. "Mason Davies, at your service." Lily blushed and gently shook his hand.

"Lily Evans, pleasure to make your acquaintance."

He brought her hand up to his lips and placed a soft kiss to her knuckles making Lily turn even redder. "The pleasure's all mine." He straightened and let go of her hand, resuming their walk. "So, Lily, tell me a bit about yourself."

"Well, I'm a sixth year, like yourself," he nodded following along. "I have a pet owl named Squeaker." Mason raised one of his eyebrows. Lily hurried on quickly. "I know it's a funny name but I thought it was cute."

"No, no, it is cute." He quickly reassured her. Lily blushed and played with a strand of her hair as she continued to tell Mason little facts about herself. By the end, Mason had a huge grin on his face. "I think it's safe to conclude that you are absolutely the most adorable, intelligent witch I have ever met." She beamed up at him.

"I think I deserve to know a little bit about you now, yeah?"

Mason chuckled. "But of course. Where to begin," he tapped his chin in thought. "I suppose Quidditch is a safe place to start." He smiled at her. "I'm the Ravenclaw Keeper and Captain, I have been for two years. I have three older sisters and a twin brother, but I'm sure you know Jonathan. I have a couple a fake teeth from Quidditch, my favourite class is Arithmancy, I collect Chocolate Frog Cards, my favourite colour is blue, and I have an owl called Pumpy."

Lily giggled. "What made you call him Pumpy?"

He shrugged. "I'm not sure, really. He just kind of looked like a Pumpy."

The two carried on the rest of their patrol talking about small, trivial things and by the time their shift was over, they had grown quite found of each other. Mason was currently dropping Lily off at her compartment. She smiled at him and caught his eyes. They were a warm, golden honey brown. She was about to say something when the compartment door slid open to reveal a laughing James Potter, though once he caught sight of Lily and Mason he stopped laughing.

"Davies. What are you doing here?" He asked rudely, leaning against the side on the door.

Mason squared his chest up a little. "Lily and I just finished our rounds and I was dropping her off." He said gesturing to his side where she stood, glaring at James.

James' eyes narrowed. "Well you can obviously leave now, she's here."

Lily bristled. "Oh, get your panties out of their twist, Potter and leave us alone for a minute; we were talking."

He crossed his arms. "Anything you were about to say to Davies in private you can say with me here."

She rolled her eyes and turned back to Mason. "I'm sorry about him, he can be a real prat when he puts his mind to it." He chuckled and waved his hands in a dismissive manor.

"It's alright. I hope to see you around more often, Lily. I had a lot of fun patrolling with you and I'd like to get to know you even more." Her heart fluttered in her chest at his words.

Lily glanced at James out of the corner of her eye before she leaned up and pressed her lips to Mason's cheek. "I'd like that as well." She said with a bright smile on her face. Mason had gone a bit red and his face was taken over by a large grin. He nodded quickly at James before leaving, glancing back at Lily once. She sighed happily as she watched him leave but was quickly brought back to reality when James gripped her upper arms and turned her to face him.

"What the hell was that, Evans?" He growled, his eyes narrowed to angry slits. Lily glared back at him.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Potter." She spat, feigning ignorance.

"I'm talking about how you kissed Davies just to spite me." Lily laughed, but it was devoid of humour.

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe I kissed _Mason _because I fancy him. Or did you just think that I couldn't possibly fancy someone other than you?" James didn't reply so Lily went on. "I hate to break it to you, Potter but not everything revolves around your giant, fat_head_!" She went to wiggle out of his grasp but James let go of her. He stepped around her and walked off down the corridor.Lily turned towards the opened compartment to see everybody frozen in place, staring in her direction. "What?" She snapped irritably. They all turned away and continued what they had been doing before the row. Lily sighed and flopped down next to Freya who was giving her a look.

"Was the kiss in front of James completely necessary?" Lily rolled her eyes.

"I don't need you to be on my case about this, too." Freya threw her arms up in exasperation.

"You know how much he likes you, Lily and you looked right at him before kissing Mason!" Lily opened her mouth to object but Freya silenced her. "Don't lie I saw you look at him. It's cruel, not just to James but to Mason as well. You're letting him think he has a chance when really you're just using him to spite James."

A hurt look passed across Lily's face. "You're supposed to be my friend."

Freya sighed. "I am your friend, Lily, but I'm Jem's friend, too." She rested a hand on her friend's shoulder and stood up. "If you really like Mason, then I'm happy for you because he seems to like you just as much, but if you're just doing this to make Jem jealous then just know that I don't agree with what you're doing." She left the compartment, most likely to go look for James. Lily slouched back into the seat, defeated.

Of course she liked Mason, she thought to herself. What wasn't there to like about him? He was attractive, smart, funny, kind, and he seemed to really care about what she had to say. And yet… she felt as though there was still something missing. Lily sighed and buried her face in her hands, as if to rub away the stress of her current situation. She closed her eyes and thought of Mason's warm, honey coloured ones, but as she went to picture them, only angry hazel eyes stared back at her.

*†‡†*

Freya walked down the long, narrow train corridor, searching for James. After his little row with Lily in the hallway he had taken off without a word and that worried her. She was about to give up when she heard a resounding thud come from one of the compartments. She slid the door open to find James leaning forward, his hands placed on either side of his head that rested on the wall. He didn't look up. She slid the door shut and walked over to him and rubbed his back, attempting to calm him.

"What are you doing, Jem?" Her voice was filled with concern. He let out a huff of breath but didn't reply further. She pulled him down to floor so that they sat pretzel style, facing each one another. James had his head turned to the side, refusing to look at her. Freya grabbed his hands and started to play with them. His Quidditch worn hands were much bigger and tougher than her soft skinned petite ones. "Why are you acting like such a child? You and Lily get into a row at least once a week." James laughed bitterly.

"Yeah but this time it was different."

Freya raised an eyebrow. "Because she fancies Mason?" His head snapped around to look at her.

"She fancies him?"

She shrugged, continuing to play with his hands. "I think she might." She looked up in thought. "I think Mason is the only other bloke she's fancied since her small crush on Remus in third year." James looked surprised. "Lily never tried anything with Remus obviously, but I think she might with Mason." His surprised face morphed into an angry one.

"If Davies does anything with Lily I'll knock him off his broom."

Freya gave him a look. "You know you don't own Lily so you can't make her do anything or stop someone from trying to go out with her, and why don't you call her by her first name to her face?"

"I don't know, most likely from habit but that's not the point. Davies is the Captain for Ravenclaw and what if he's just using Lily to spy on my Quidditch practises?"

She rolled her eyes. "Jem, not everybody is as crazy as you when it comes to Quidditch. Besides, Mason looks like a genuinely likes her." She shrugged. "And he's cute."

James scowled. "I'm cute, too!" Freya laughed.

"Yeah but you're too arrogant and immature for Lily. Plus, you bullied her best friend for five years. Maybe you should try and go out with a different girl." She suggested nonchalantly.

"But I don't want another girl. I want Lily." He whined.

"Yeah well Lily doesn't want you. She may never want you. Not as long as you keep acting like a prick to her."

James ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "I know but I can't help it! My brain just freezes up when she's around." He gave her a hopeful look. "Will you help get her to go out with me?"

Freya sighed and contemplated this. "I'll tell you what. This year I want you to try and date other girls." James looked repulsed. "Let me finish. Try to look at other girls and give them a chance but if by the end of the school year you still have your heart set on Lily then I will help you get her over the summer. Deal?" James eyed her suspiciously. He stuck out his hand, his pinkie outstretched.

"Swear on it." Freya smiled and interlocked their little fingers together. They leaned forward and kissed their joined hands just like they always had when they were little.

"I promise." Freya looked around the compartment as if noticing they were alone for the first time. "How did you get this empty compartment?" She asked suspiciously. James grinned.

"I may have kicked out a few first years." Freya shook her head in disapproval but laughed anyway.

They sat together in the compartment for the rest of the ride to Hogwarts. They didn't say much, but they took comfort in knowing the other was there.

*†‡†*

Lily stepped off the train and looked around, trying to find any sign of red hair that matched her own. She spotted Freya standing next to Hagrid; the two were deep in conversation. As Lily walked over she noticed the Marauders goofing off around the lake by the first years but one member of their gang was missing. Lily and James had gotten into rows before but this time something had felt different and the whole train ride she had not been able to shake that feeling. She was pulled from her thoughts when two fingers snapped in her face.

"Earth to Lily. I repeat, earth to Lily." Freya was standing next to her friend, trying to see what had been preoccupying her attention. She noticed where Lily's gaze was pointed and squinted to get a better look. "Are you staring at Remus' ass?"

"No!" Lily replied quickly. "I was just thinking."

Freya raised an eyebrow, a small smile slowly taking over her face. "About Remus' ass?"

"Of course not," she exclaimed at her grinning friend."Let's just go grab a carriage." Lily grabbed onto Freya's forearm and dragged her over to the line of empty carriages. After finding one and settling in, they were joined by Sylvia Parker and Paige Williamson, two other Gryffindor sixth years. "Hey guys," Lily greeted amiably. "How was your summer?" Paige had bright blue eyes and chestnut brown hair. While many of the guys thought she was cute, most of the time she was overshadowed by Sylvia whose blonde hair always looked pin straight and blue eyes sparkled. Paige was a lot more shy and quiet than Sylvia and usually let her friend speak for her.

"We had a really lovely summer, Lily. Thank you for asking." Sylvia answered as if she had rehearsed the sentence. "And I trust you both had good summers as well?"

Lily smiled back. "Yes, it was a lot of fun being able to spend it with Freya." She glanced over at Freya who wore an expression of weariness. Lily jabbed her with her elbow, causing her to sit straighter and smile at the girls opposite them. The smile looked more like a grimace.

Sylvia leaned forward as if telling a secret. "I heard you and James Potter got a bit cosy this summer and that's why he was so angry with you on the train when he saw you with Mason." Lily drew back, in shock.

"No! Who's saying this?"

Sylvia shrugged and leaned back in her. "I don't know, I just heard two Hufflepuffs talking about it in the train corridor." A sly smile spread across her face. "Is he a good shag?"

Lily's shock turned to anger. "We didn't shag!" She huffed and crossed her arm, refusing to say anything more. The rest of the short ride up to the castle was filled with idle chit-chat from Sylvia who occasionally let Paige say something.

Second through seventh year students were escorted into the Great Hall where they were instructed to sit down and wait for the Sorting Ceremony to begin. Lily and Freya sat at the far end of the table across from the Marauders. Sirius wore an impatient expression. "When are we going to eat?" He exclaimed loudly, causing the whole of the Great Hall to laugh. There was a twinkle of amusement in Dumbledore's eyes.

"Do not worry, Mr Black, the feast will begin shortly." And sure enough not a minute later, the doors to the hall burst open to reveal Minerva McGonagall leading a neat line of nervous looking, jittery first years. When they reached the front of the room, the Sorting Hat began to sing. Many of the first years looked surprised. After the song ended, Professor McGonagall unrivalled the long scroll containing the list of first years' names.

"Alistair, Lucas." She called out, beginning the Sorting.

*†‡†*

Lily woke up extra early the next day despite the fact that she had headed to bed late the night before. She hoped in the shower, humming happily. Gryffindor had gotten eight new first years at the Welcome Feast, all who seemed delighted to be Sorted into the house Albus Dumbledore himself had been in. Once Lily finished with her wash, she dried her hair with her wand and woke up Freya. She shook her friend's sleeping form. "Freya," she whispered loudly. "Get up. It's half past six." Freya groaned and pushed Lily away.

"Gerrof me. It's too damn early." Lily sighed. She walked over to her trunk and pulled out a bag of sweets.

"If you wake up now I'll give you some of my Jelly Slugs." She said dangling the small bag over Freya's nose. One of Freya's eyes popped open and she examined the bag.

"Alright give me a minute." She got out of bed and grabbed the sweets as she headed towards the shower. Lily smiled and shook her head at her friend's antics as she dressed in her school robes, checking in the mirror to make sure her gold and scarlet tie was straight in her jumper and her black skirt was smooth. She threw her black robe over her creaseless white shirt before grabbing her wand and putting it in her pocket. Lily threw on some light makeup as Freya emerged from the loo a moment later, the water in her dark red hair making it appear like blood. She popped the last sweet in her mouth as she dressed. When she was done she wondered over to Lily and started to put on a small amount of makeup as well. "So…why did you wake me up at this ungodly hour?" Lily rolled her eyes.

"It's only seven o'clock, Freya and you had better get used to waking up early now that summer is over. Besides," Lily positioned her pointed hat on her head, "I wanted to go get our schedules early so we could prepare for class."

Freya groaned and grabbed her hat quickly before Lily dragged her out of the room. "Why did I become friends with such a maniac?" This earned her a smack from Lily.

The girls seemed to be the only people awake in Gryffindor Tower for it was eerily quiet as they made their way through the common room. Once they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, it swung open allowing them to exit. The girls made their way to Professor McGonagall's office chatting quietly on the way there in an effort not to wake some of the still sleeping paintings. Once they arrived, Lily knocked on her office door, waiting for a minute before it swung open to reveal their tight lipped, black-haired professor.

"Miss Evans, Miss MacGregor." She addressed them. "What brings you to my office at this hour in the morning?" Lily went on quickly to explain that they wanted to get their schedules early so that they could prepare for class. A small but notable smile quirked the side of her lip at the information. McGonagall always seemed to like the way Lily thought ahead. "Yes, of course." She waved her wand and two pieces of paper came flying off of her desk to land neatly in her hands. "Here you two go," she handed them the sheets and began to shoo them off. "I will see you again at breakfast." She said firmly before shutting the door. Lily and Freya found they had Arithmancy first with the Ravenclaws. Lily was both excited and nervous to know that she would be having class with Mason.

Freya was giving her a strange look. "What has you so jittery?" Lily felt her face flush red and she stammered.

"We have Arithmancy first."

Freya narrowed her eyes at her friend's strange behaviour. "Yeah…we've had that class with the Ravenclaws since third year."

"Yes," Lily spoke, "class with the Ravenclaws." Freya shook her head.

"I don't get it."

Lily smacked her. "Are you daft?" Freya rubbed her arm and mumbled to herself about child abuse. "Who do you know is in Ravenclaw?" Freya was thought quietly, and then she got it.

"Mason Davies is in Ravenclaw!" Lily rolled her eyes at her friend's idiocy. "And you fancy him." Freya teased, making googly eyes at her friend. Lily flushed redder and tried to hide her face behind her hair. Freya laughed. "My God, Lily, how taken can you be with him? You just got to know each other yesterday!"

"Yes well," she stammered, trying not to make herself seem like a love struck school girl. "He's very endearing." Freya snorted with laughter.

"Did you really just use the word endearing?" She laughed harder. "What is this? The twelve century?" Lily scowled at her friend.

"Oh, shut it, Freya. At least I have the audacity to use bigger words than Flobberworm." Freya sobered, holding an offended hand to her chest.

"I do too know big words!"

Lily raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Oh, please do tell."

Freya puffed out her chest and gave a grin. "Accoutrements."

"And what does accoutrement mean?" She asked her friend. Freya shrugged.

"Stuff." Lily laughed and continued to laugh as Freya proceeded to make an obscene gesture towards her, making one of the portraits on the wall gasp in outrage. Lily only laughed harder.

*†‡†*

After breakfast, Lily and Freya decided to go to the library before class to refresh their memory on their first subject, but unbeknownst to them, they had been followed. Severus Snape walked behind the two red heads as they made their way out of the Great Hall, hoping to get Lily alone so that he could apologize. When the girls reached their destination, they picked a table by a window and sat down to read their textbook. After a few minutes of having the feeling somebody was watching her, Freya looked up to lock eyes with Severus. She narrowed her eyes at him as he turned his gaze away. She nudged Lily's foot with her own, causing her to glare at Freya.

"What?" She snapped quietly. Freya nodded her head in the direction of Severus.

"Somebody is creeping." Lily turned her head and caught sight of her old best friend shortly before turning back around and continuing to read her Arithmancy textbook. Freya looked surprised. "Aren't you going to talk to him?" Lily shook her head without looking up.

"Severus and I have nothing to discuss, and frankly, I don't want to speak to him."

Freya looked over Lily's shoulder to see that Severus was staring at the back of her head. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "Lily he's still glaring at you and I don't like the looks of him."

Lily growled and slammed her book down onto the table causing Madam Pince to look their way. "I already told you, I don't want to talk to him."

"Okay, well at least get him to stop glaring at us."

Lily rolled her eyes and went back to reading. "Stop being such a baby." Freya pouted. "I'm not being a babe, and Severus is beginning to weird me out with his not stop glaring."

Lily continued to read. "Just ignore him."

"That's a bit hard when it feels like his black eyes are piercing your soul." Lily frowned.

"Stop being so dramatic." The two continued their bickering, not noticing the glare they were receiving from Madam Pince until she walked over.

"Ladies. I will not tolerate such obnoxious behaviour in my library." She attempting to whisper but it came out more of a shrieking yell. Freya pretended to wipe spit from her face causing Madam Pince to grow angrier. "Get _out _of my library!" Lily and Freya scrambled to get their things, but not before Freya sent a stack of books flying the ground. "Miss MacGregor!" She shrieked. Freya held back a grin.

"Sorry, Madam, it was an accident. I swear it on Dumbledore's beard!" Madam Pince was fuming.

"Just _get out!_" The girls darted out of the library, the doors angrily slamming behind them.

Lily was glaring at Freya. "Way to get us kicked out of the library! And on the first day, too!" Freya rolled her eyes.

"You know how much she loathes me! She's had it out for me since first year!" Lily tried to stay serious but couldn't stop the smile that flittered onto her face when she remembered the first time Freya had gotten kicked out of the library. Freya smiled. "See! You remember how terrible she was to me!" Lily's grin grew.

"That may have been because you knocked over a whole row of bookshelves." Freya threw her hands up.

"It was James! The prat got the hell out of there the second it began to tip." She snorted. "So much for sticking it with your friends." Lily giggled but their conversation was interrupted by a male voice from behind.

"Wait." It called. The girls turned to see Severus Snape running to catch up to them. When he did he turned to Freya. "May I please talk to Lily alone for a minute." She narrowed her eyes. "I promise, I won't do anything to harm her. I never would." Freya growled protectively.

"It's already a little too late for that promise don't you think?" Severus paled. Lily gripped Freya's hand and squeezed it for support.

"It's fine, Freya, you go on ahead and I'll meet you in class." She looked unsure but Lily smiled and mouth "go".

She turned back to Severus one last time before leaving. "Stop giving people creepy glares."

Severus mentally rolled his eyes. Once Freya's head of red hair turned the corner and vanished from sight, Severus bounded into his planned apology.

"Lily, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean what I said." He pleaded. "You know how they are. It was their fault. I would have never called you that if it weren't for them." Lily calmly held up her hand to silence him. She was tired of his excuses and his hateful obsession with the Marauders.

"Let me speak, Sev." He stopped his babbling and felt hope flutter through his chest at the sound of his old nickname, but it was soon shot down by her words. "You were my best friend. I would have done anything for you and you took my friendship and stomped all over it." He went to object but she held up her hand. "No. I'm doing the talking now." She breathed in deeply and then let out the emotions that she had held inside of her for the entirety of the summer. "While what happened at the end of term last year did play a part in the falling out of our friendship, it was only a small part. The biggest thing that hurt me was how obsessed you had become with the Dark Arts and how the people who you chose to hang around with changed you." She felt her throat tighten but she refused to cry. "The boy who stands in front of me now, is not the same boy I became friends with as a little girl. And I want nothing to do with this new person." Severus' jaw unhinged and he stammered, for the first time in his life, speechless. "You have chosen your path, and I have chosen mine." Their eyes met. "Those paths don't lead to the same destination, Sev. They don't cross." She shook her head and broke their connection. "You can never be my friend anymore. Not truly and for that I am sorry. Not for the loss of you in my life but for the boy you used to be." Lily breathed out. "Goodbye, Sev." She turned on her heal and walked away. Severus watched her leave, but didn't go after her. He felt a strange ache in his chest and it grew with every step she put between them. Severus realised that he was feeling his heart break.

Once Lily was out of sight, she leaned against the closest wall for support; the burden of her past friendship with Severus lifted off of her shoulders, making them feel more free, but also much more empty.

She sighed and looked down at her watch. She still had time before class started but she had nothing to do. She was pulled from her thoughts when a voice down the hall yelled her name. At first she thought it was Severus, but then she looked up to see Mason Davies jogging over to her with a smile on his face.

"Hey there, Red." He said once he had reached her. Lily raised an eyebrow at the nickname.

"Red?" She asked cocking her head to the side slightly. Mason grinned sheepishly.

"Err, yeah, the first time I saw you I thought your hair kind of looked like the petals of a Christmas Poinsettia." Laughter bubbled from Lily's mouth. "If you don't like the name, I won't call you Red." She shook her head as her giggling slowed down.

"No, I really like it." She smiled at him and he returned it quickly with one of his own. "But you know, Freya and I pretty much have the same hair colour." She pointed out. Mason laughed.

"Right. I forgot about that." He scratched his neck nervously, but Lily put a hand on his arm and smiled reassuringly.

"I'm sure Freya won't mind." Mason ginned and held out his arms for her.

"Well, while I'm here I may as well be useful and take you to class," he paused. "That is if you have a class first block?" She nodded and looped her arm through his.

"We actually have the same class next." He looked surprised and Lily giggled. "Arithmancy." Understanding dawned on Mason's face before his smiled broadened.

"That's great. I'll be able to spend even more time with you than I thought." Lily laughed as he pulled her down the corridor towards the staircases. The walk to class was filled with dumb jokes told by Mason that Lily laughed at anyway as well as a lot of hair twirling. They reached the class right before the bell sounded, signalling the start of the school day. Lily sat down net to Freya who was making googly eyes at her and fluttering her eyelashes as she twirled her hair around one of her fingers.

"So I see you have had a good start to the day." She said motioning her head to Mason who sat at the front of the class with some of his Ravenclaw friends. Lily looked at his muscular back and sighed happily.

"Yeah..." She said trailing off at the end dreamily. Freya pretended to gag.

"Well how did your morning for from talking to Severus to flirting around with Mason Davies?" Freya asked curiously.

"Severus and I talked and I told him straight that we could not be friends anymore. Not with the company that he keeps." Freya nodded in understanding and continued to pretend she was taking notes, but she had just charmed her quill to write for her. "Then when I was walking to class, Mason found me and offered to escort me." Lily smiled. "He's really funny. And sweet, too." She glanced over at him and saw that Mason was staring at her. He smiled as Lily blushed and looked down at her parchment. Freya rolled her eyes.

"I think I'm going to puke at the sappy school girl you have become."

*†‡†*

Before dinner, there was a short perfects meeting in the empty Transfiguration classroom. Lily was the first to arrive and quickly made her way to Alice to discuss something that she had been thinking about all day.

"Alice," she called. The Head Girl turned and smiled when she caught sight of Lily. "I was wondering if you could put Mason and I on patrols together. So that we could, you know. Get to know each other a little better." Lily's face had turned a dark shade of red, but Alice just smiled knowingly at her friend.

"Yeah, of course! I had you with Remus but I can change that real fast." She winked at Lily whose face flushed again. She thanked her and took an empty seat, waiting for the rest of the perfects to show up. During the actual meeting, Frank and Alice discussed patrol schedules first before Frank moved on to say that all Quidditch Captains would have to meet in the first week of school with him to discuss try outs as well as practise schedules. When they moved onto Hogsmeade weekends, the room took on a much lighter feeling that was mixed with excitement. The two Heads stated that the first Hogsmeade weekend would most likely happen sometime in early November. Mason looked over at Lily once the information had been presented. He noticed that she had already been looking at him and instantly a small blush crept up her cheeks.

When the meeting concluded, Lily and Remus walked together down to the Great Hall to join their friends at the Gryffindor table. Lily sat down next to Freya who was giving her an expectant look.

"So did Alice put you guys together," she whispered into Lily's ear, earning a curious glance from Sirius. Lily nodded.

"Mason looked at me when they moved onto talk about Hogsmeade weekends. Do you think he'll ask me to go with him?" She looked anxious but a twinkle of excitement could be seen in her eyes.

"I think he'd be a pretty big fool if he didn't ask you, Lily." It wasn't Freya but Remus who said this. Lily looked surprised. "I know you asked Alice to switch the patrol schedules." Lily's face blushed furiously.

"Are you mad at me?" She didn't mean to upset Remus' feelings and she hadn't meant for him to find out she had changed the schedules. Remus smiled and shook his head.

"Nah, it's all good. Mason seems to be a lucky guy." There was a loud thump next to Remus. Everybody turned to see a pissed off, fuming James Potter who had just banged his knee against the bottom of the table.

Sirius laughed uneasily and tried to massage James' shoulders. "Prongs here is just a little tense after the first day of classes. No need to worry." James just grunted and went back to looking at his plate. Freya began to flick peas at him. He scowled after one hit him in the eye.

"What the hell, Freya?"

"Stop being such a sourpuss and remember what I told you on the train." Peter looked confused.

"What did you tell him on the train?" Freya glared at him and shrugged.

"James can tell you if he wants." All the boys looked at James who just shook his head.

"I'll tell you later." He glanced up at Lily who had not been listening to the conversation but was instead making lovey faces at Mason who was sitting at the Ravenclaw table. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. He stood up from the table and made to leave. "I've lost my appetite." His friends watched helplessly as James walked out of the Great Hall. Lily had not even glanced away from Mason.

James made his way up to the Gryffindor common room where he collapsed onto one of the large, plush chairs. He sat in front of the fire, staring into it motionlessly for some time before he heard the chatter of his housemates begin to fill the room. When it grew too noisy for his liking, James climbed the stairs up to the sixth year boy's dorm and threw off his glasses as he collapsed onto his bed. He stared up at the canopy of his bed for a while, thinking about what Freya had told him. Maybe she was right. Maybe he should just give up on Lily, but as he continued to think about it, giving up on her didn't feel right to him. He sighed as the door flew open to reveal his three friends.

"Oi, Prongs," called Sirius. "Get your sad arse up and come talk to the love doctors!" But James didn't budge; something he would soon come to regret for Sirius was jumping on his bed like a dog a minute later. "Why the long face, Prongsie? Don't tell me Evans has shoved a stick up your arse." James scowled and kicked his friend off the side of the bed.

"Shut up, Padfoot. And no, for the record, I haven't any stick up my arse." He put on his glasses to get a better look at his friends.

"Then why've you been in such a shit mood since yesterday," asked Remus who actually looked mildly concerned. James sighed before answering.

"Because Evans fancies Mason Bloody Davies and because Freya gave me some crap advice that's been nagging at me relentlessly." Peter's round, chubby head popped up from beside the bed.

"What advice did she give to you?"

"She told me to try and date other girls this year and promised that if I still liked Evans by the end of school that she would help get her to like me." Confusion dawned on the faces of his friends. Remus spoke up first.

"That doesn't sound like a bad idea, Prongs." Sirius nodded in agreement.

"What's the worst that could happen? You meet a cute bird, snog her and then get tired and move onto the next for a year before getting together with Evans! Doesn't sound too bad to me." Remus frowned and smacked the back of his head.

"I'm sure that Freya just wants him to look at his options besides Lily and not go snogging every girl on campus." Sirius rubbed the back of his head. James ran a frustrated hand through his messy hair.

"Yeah but none of these girls compare to Lily, and I know that sounds bad, but I just can't help but compare them all to her." James sighed and slumped back. "I don't know what to do." Remus sat down and patted James' shoulder.

"Just get some sleep, Prongs. I'll bet that soon one of these birds will catch your eye and you won't even remember why Lily Evans was giving you such a hard time. If they don't, then I'm certain Freya will stick to her promise and get you your girl."

James smiled weakly at his friend. "Thanks, Moony." Sirius scoffed. "Thanks, Padfoot." He turned to Peter who was smiling. "You're much better at other things, Wormtail." Peter grinned up at his friend.

"Don't I know it." The boys laughed and spent the rest of their evening in the kitchens, eating deserts as Sirius listed off all the single, good-looking girls at Hogwarts that James should go after, but his mind kept returning to his favourite, short-tempered red-head.


	5. Chapter 5

James let out a heavy sigh as he posted the notice for the Gryffindor Quidditch try-outs that were going to be held three days' time on Saturday morning. Sirius patted his back reassuringly.

"It'll go well, Prongs. I'm sure we won't get too many inexperienced second years or hopeful Hufflepuffs this year." James laughed bitterly.

"Yeah, one can only dream…McGonagall has already given me the list and some of these names seem out of place." They walked out of the common room to meet up with Peter and Remus in the corridor.

"Did you put up the sheet," Remus asked as they walked towards the staircases leading to the Great Hall for breakfast. James nodded.

"Hopefully, if all the people who were on the team last year try-out we can win the Quidditch and House cup again."

Sirius nudged his friend with his elbow. "With you as Captain Prongs, we could never lose," he belted joyfully, startling some of the portraits who scowled at the boys when they passed, shaking their fists. Sirius eyed them. "You know, somebody 'ought to do something about these paintings." A sly grin spread across his face. "I've an idea." James raised an eyebrow and Remus rolled his eyes.

"Go on, Padfoot," James began. "Enlighten us."

The boys hopped off the last stair and went to round the corner. "Well, I was thinking —," Sirius was cut off by a grunt and a squeak as James ploughed over a girl. She fell back onto her bum, her books and parchment flying everywhere. She looked up at the four older boys startled. Remus gathered her things as James helped her up.

"I'm sorry." He grabbed her tense hand and pulled the girl to her feet. "I didn't see you there." He met her eyes to see embarrassment shining in them.

"I'm so sorry. I-I didn't mean to bump into you." She gathered herself quickly, dusting off her robes. "Merlin, this is humiliating." She hid her red face behind her veil of light brown hair and thanked Remus quickly as she grabbed her stuff and made to leave, but was stopped when James wrapped his fingers around her wrist. She looked back at him startled, her eyes darting between their hands and his face.

"Hey, it's not your fault, and if you think that's humiliating you should have seen Padfoot when we threw his underwear all over the Whomping Willow." There was a loud protest from Sirius at James telling the girl this. She let a small smile slip and James grinned. "Ahh, there's a smile. You're Estella Kingsman, right? Aurora's older sister?" She nodded. Aurora Kingsman was a fourth year that had played Seeker on the Gryffindor Quidditch team in her third. She was a fast flyer and James hoped she'd be playing again this year. "You must be a fifth year than, yeah?" Again she nodded. "Well, we better not keep you from classes. Fifth year is a pretty busy one." James let go of her wrist and back peddled towards the Great Hall. "We'll see you 'round." He called to her. Estella waved and hurried to class, flushing redder than she ever had. Sirius was grinning at James. "What's with the creepy smile, Padfoot," he asked as he sat across from Freya who was busy talking to Lily. Both girls were too engrossed in their hushed conversation and didn't glance at the Marauders.

"That cute girl we bumped into, Estella. She fancies you." James snorted and piled food onto his plate.

"What makes you think so," he questioned, his mouth filled with eggs.

"Are you joking?" Said Remus, smiling at his friend. "She turned redder than a Christmas ornament."

"That's because she was embarrassed." Remus rolled his eyes at his friend's idiocy.

"If you honestly think she turned that red from embarrassment then you're the dumbest bloke on campus. She fancies you, mate. And I for one think that you should get to know her." Sirius and Peter nodded in agreement. Freya and Lily had stopped talking and were listening to them.

"What are you lot on about?" Freya asked, eyeing them curiously. Sirius spoke up.

"Estella Kingsman." She looked confused.

"The Gryffindor fifth year?" Sirius nodded. "What about her?"

"We think she fancies Prongs and we're trying to get him to get over himself and get to know her." Said Remus as he buttered his toast. She smiled.

"I think it's a grand idea. She's a nice lass, Jem and you should remember what I told you on the train." His eyes quickly darted to Lily who was eyeing him with a mixed expression of curiosity and disapproval.

"Why would someone as sweet and nice as Estella Kingsman fancy you," she asked, narrowing her eyes slightly. James shrugged.

"Maybe my dashing good looks and charming personality?" James offered smirking at her. Lily snorted in laughter.

"Right… well, Freya and I are off to Hagrid's before class." The girls stood up and gathered their things. "See you lot later." Freya waved back to them as Lily dragged her out of the Great Hall. Sirius watched in amusement.

"I wish Freya would let me manhandle her." James frowned and smacked the back of his friends head.

"I told you that the one girl that was always off limits to you was Fey. She doesn't need Hogwart's biggest playboy trying to shag her." Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Is it so hard for you to believe that I want a real relationship?" All three of his friend replied with the same answer unanimously.

"Yes." Sirius was the next to frown.

When the boys had finished eating, Peter headed to Muggle Studies as Remus, Sirius, and James walked towards the library; although it looked more like Remus was dragging Sirius and James, both of whom wanted to vandalise the school paintings. On their way into the library, James noticed a head of golden brown hair searching for a book amidst the shelves. He smiled and waved at Estella who after a minute looked up to meet his eyes. She quickly smiled, her face flushing a soft pink. Sirius nudged him in the stomach, urging him to go talk to her. James made a face at his friend but walked over anyway.

"Hey, Estella, fancy seeing you here." He said leaning against the book shelf next to her. "Shouldn't you be in class?" She raised an eyebrow and looked down at her watch.

"It's only, eight o'clock and class starts at nine." James let out a nervous laugh and ran a hand through his hair.

"Right, I was just testing to make sure you knew, good job." He flashed her a smile and watched as she ducked her head and blushed again. James observed her as she searched through the shelves. "What are you looking for," he questioned just as she reached down and snatched a large, leather-bound book off the shelf and held it up.

"Nothing anymore, but thank you for asking." She carefully balanced the book on top of her already high stack in her arms.

"Here," he offered. "Let me help you carry them." He reached out for the books, but Estella moved them away and blushed; not meeting his gaze.

"It's quite alright, I-I can handle it myself, but thank you again for offering." She stepped to the side to walk around him. "It was, uh, really nice talking to you, um…" she trailed off at the end unsure of what to say to him.

"You can call me James you know." He offered her, giving a smile. Her face flushed redder and she nodded.

"It was really nice talking to you…James." His grin widened at the use of his name.

"I'll see you later, Estella." She smiled and finally looked up to meet his eyes. He noted that hers were very much like a doe's; large and a soft brown colour.

"Bye." She whispered before walking away to check out. He watched her walk out of the library before making his way to the table Sirius and Remus had positioned themselves to watch the exchange that had taken place. They were grinning and pretending to do work. James sat down once he reached them and took out his Transfiguration essay. Sirius was staring at him expectantly.

"Well," he said, "aren't you going to tell us what happened?" James rolled his eyes.

"Are you telling me that you weren't listening the whole time?" A wolfish grin crossed Sirius' face.

"Okay, you've got us there, but it was Moony's idea." Remus shook his head at his friend but set his book down on the table.

"From what I saw, Prongs, she seems to really like you, but she also seems unbelievably shy" he said sincerely. "And she's cute." James sighed and ran a hand through his tangled hair.

"I know that, Moony but the thing is, no matter how much I've tried to stop looking at Evans these past two weeks, my eyes seem to always wander back to her." He brought his head down and began to bang it lightly against the table. "It would be very nice to get to know Estella but I wouldn't want to take her out on a date when I still have feelings for Lily."

"Maybe your eyes keep looking back at Evans 'cause you think you have nothing better to look at." He reached out and rested his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Tonight, I want you to sit with her in the common room; you should talk to her more, learn a bit about her and then take her on a date. Besides, Evans is going to be too busy ogling Mason Davies to notice you this year." Sirius leaned back in his chair. "Play your field, Prongs. You gots to show Evans that she isn't the only bird that can catch your eye."

"I hate to tell you this, but Sirius is right." At this information Sirius beamed and whipped a pretend tear away from his cheek.

"I think that's the first time you're ever said that." Remus rolled his eyes but cracked a small smile.

*†‡†*

During second block, Remus left James and Sirius to go to Ancient Runes class. The two Marauders were done with their work and so they decided it was a good time to wreak havoc on the portraits of Hogwarts. They had made their way down from the seventh floor and were currently vandalising the third floor, drawing obscene images all over the pictures, making many of them cry in outrage. Sirius was grinning devilishly as he drew a very detailed set of breasts on a sleeping man. When he was done he took and step back and admired his work.

"Oy, Prongs!" He said as he barked out a laugh. "Look at this masterpiece!" James jogged over from where he was drawing at the other end of the corridor. He took one look at Sirius' new instalment to the painting and laughed quickly before adding a nice rouge to the man's lips.

"There," he said smiling, "now it looks much better." The boys looked at each other with matching grins. They travelled down to the second where just as they began to draw, they heard a familiar voice.

"Do you see them, Mrs Norris?" It was Filch. "I know they're on this here floor." James and Sirius scrambled down the hall, running away from the sound of Filch's voice. They dashed into an unused classroom, sealing the door shut behind them. James took out a folded up piece of parchment from his pocket and pointed the tip of his wand to it.

"_I solemnly swear that I am up to no good_," he whispered. Black ink began to seep into the parchment bringing to life the Marauder's Map, a magical object the four boys had created the summer before their fifth year. He scanned the map, looking for the dot labelled Filch. He found it wondering outside the classroom. James and Sirius watched as he made his way down the corridor and moved up to the third floor, heading towards Dumbledore's office. James blew out a breath he hadn't realised he had been holding. "That was close."

Sirius was grinning. "Close, but a hell of a lot of fun." He looked down at his watch. "C'mon, let's head down for lunch." They poked their heads out into the hall, checking one last time, before waltzing out and down to the first floor. On the way down, the bell rang to signal the end of class. The two boys faced each other and grinned, knowing that everybody would see their latest work. When they arrived at the Great Hall, they sat down at the Gryffindor table and grabbed some food as they watched the door, waiting for students to stream in and talk about the paintings and after a moment they did. A group of Hufflepuff girls strolled in laughing and whispering as they glanced over at James and Sirius. The girls giggled even more when the boys flashed them matching grins. The next person they saw was Peter who looked so excited he could have wet himself. He scampered up to James and Sirius.

"Did you guys do that to all the paintings?" He asked with admiration shining in his large watery eyes. Sirius grinned.

"Well, not all of them. Only the ones we thought deserved it." Peter looked giddy, but the smiled slipped off his face when he saw Freya and Lily approach. Lily wore a disappointed scowl on her face while Freya just had an observant look on hers. She sat across from James and reached over to mess up his hair as she sat. He frowned and ran his hand through his hair, as if to groom it.

"Well done boys," Sirius began to smile but it slipped off his face at her next words. "At first, I thought it was the work of a first year, seeing how easy and unbelievably idiotic it was, but then I noticed exactly what was drawn and I knew it must have been you two dunces." Sirius drew back, as if highly offended.

"I doubt a first year could have been able to draw in such detail," he cried. "My art work is fantastic!" Freya rolled her eyes and grabbed an apple as Lily shook her head.

"It is inappropriate and vulgar! I'm sure that you have both mentally scarred the minds of many innocent first years." She narrowed her bright, angry eyes at the boys. "You should be ashamed of yourselves." James just gave her a cheeky grin as he leaned across the table to be closer to her.

"That's kind of strange to hear from the girl who had her face on my crotch at the beginning of summer." Her face flushed furiously and she went to smack James' smirk off of his face but he darted back out of reach, laughing all the while.

"Th-that was an accident." She glanced around to make sure no one else at the table had heard before going on. "And it is also something that will never, _ever_ happen again."

James' continued to grin at her, not able to help himself, he carried on taunting her. "I don't know, Evans. But I reckon you enjoyed it." Lily reeled back looking affronted.

"I most certainly did not," she cried in outrage. Her raised voice started to grab the attention of some of the students, for they turned their heads eagerly to watch the unfolding row. Their eyes met and caught and James remembered just how much he loved the sight of her angry. Her face was flushed and her green eyes seemed to glow. She wore the blazing look the he had come to love so much. He felt his heart pound harder in his chest.

James leaned a bit closer and said, "Denial isn't just a river in Egypt." The table roared with laughter at his remark; even Freya could be seen fighting back a smile. Lily, on the other hand, was furious.

"I AM NOT IN DENIAL," she grabbed the already bitten apple in Freya's hand and threw it as hard as she could at James' face, unlike first year, she didn't miss. The apple hit him square on the bridge of his nose, snapping his glasses into two. Surprised and disoriented, he lost his balance and fell off the bench, landing flat on his bum, his legs still hanging onto his seat. Most of the people had turned to fuzzy blurs to James, but the raucous laughter was easily heard. Remus, who had arrived just before James had taken the apple to his face, pulled out his wand and fixed his friend's glasses. Now with the ability to see, James looked directly at Lily who wore a triumphant smirk on her perfect face. He glanced down at the half eaten apple in his lap and laughed, bringing it up to his mouth and taking a bite. Freya let out a shout of protest. ("I was eating that!")

"You know, Evans," he started as he chewed on the apple. "You would make a well good Chaser." Sirius barked out laughter, and the corner of Lily's lip twitched. No one but James seemed to notice this, no one but James really mattered.

*†‡†*

During last block, which was taken up by Charms, the sixth years were supposed to be practicing non-verbal spells, but Sirius' mind had wandered elsewhere. Since the start of term, he hadn't been able to get Freya alone, and even when he did spot her, she would do her best to avoid him. He stared at her from across the room where she sat with Lily. She had not noticed him looking yet, or if she had she didn't let on. He was pulled out of thought when Professor Flitwick hobbled over to him.

"Practicing hard I assume, Mr Black?" Sirius started slightly, but after a moment he smiled down at his short professor.

"'Course I am," he pointed his wand towards a sleeping Jonathan Davies and said a strong, quick, _Aguamenti! _inside his head. A jet of water sprayed out of the tip of his wand and began to soak Jonathan's robes. He jumped at the cold feeling and looked around dazed.

"The answer's Gillyweed, Professor Sprout." The class burst into laughter as Flitwick gave Jonathan a pointed look.

"Five points from Gryffindor for sleeping in my class, Mr Davies." Just as he finished speaking the bell to signal the end of classes chimed. "Practice! I want everybody to practice before our next lesson at least once!" The Gryffindor students filed out the door as quick as possible, many of them wanting to finally relax in their own common room. When Sirius and the rest of his friends made it out of the classroom, he spotted Freya and Lily walking towards the library, he ran after them, hoping to get alone time with Freya. Once he had caught up to them, he gently grabbed onto her arm, stopping her from moving any farther away. She jerked back, surprised, but relaxed slightly when she saw it was Sirius who had grabbed her.

"Mother of Merlin, Sirius! Don't sneak up on me like that."

"Right, well, I was just wondering if you would like to come with me for a short stroll around the castle." She raised an eyebrow at him curiously but before she could reply, Lily interrupted.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Black, but Freya and I already made plans to finish our homework in the library." She glanced over at her friend with a stern, McGonagall like face. Freya shrugged as if to agree with her friend, but Sirius was persistent. He latched back on to Freya's arm and tried to drag her away, but Lily pulled her back. "Let go of her, Black!" Lily tugged Freya towards her. "She's my friend!"

Sirius didn't budge and pulled Freya back towards him. "I grabbed onto her first," he snarled.

Freya let out a cry of exasperation. "You're both acting like children! Stop tugging — OW!" The two had pulled on her at the same time, stretching her body to its limit. "Would you two let go!" With a little reluctance, Lily slowly released her grip on Freya's arm, glaring at Sirius as she did so. He soon followed suit. She straightened out her robes and rubbed her arms. "Since you're both mental, I'll make the plan." She turned to Lily. "I'll meet you in the library in a few minutes." Lily stood there with her arms crossed for a minute before relenting.

"Fine, but I had better not find you two snogging in a deserted corridor." She turned and continued on to the library.

Freya scowled at her at her as she walked away. "Just so you know," she called after her, "I've never snogged Sirius!" She huffed for a second before she turned back to find him wearing a triumphant smile. "Let's just go before you cause more trouble." She pulled him along towards the stairs, Sirius grinned at her the whole way. A bit later, she let go of him and the two fell into step side-by-side.

He began to make pointless conversation. "Great weather we're having, isn't it?" Freya made a face.

"It's pouring out, Black." She motioned to the window which was littered with raindrops. "Now," she began, clasping her hands together in front of herself. "Why did you want to talk to me?" She looked over at him, tilting her head back to look at his face because of her lack of height. Sirius wore a devilish grin.

"Who said I wanted to talk?" Her eyes widened, and she went to move away from him, but he snaked his arms around her waist, pulling her flush against him as he walked her back towards the wall; trapping her there. Her eyes narrowed down to angry slits, but he held her silver gaze. "You've been ignoring me." She rolled her eyes, but Sirius felt her body relax in his arms.

"I hate to break it to you, but I've been busy with work. Not everybody waits until the last possible minute to do it like you and Jem." This time it was Sirius who narrowed his eyes.

"You know that's not what I meant."

Freya stared back defiantly, she pulled her arms from her sides and crossed them against her chest, making room between her body and Sirius. "Do I?"

He growled and ducked his head down a bit to be closer to her face. She moved her head back but it just collided with the wall, keeping her much too close to Sirius for her liking. "You seemed so fine with cuddling and flirting over the summer, but the minute we get back to school you distance yourself from me like I'm the plague." She looked up at him, scandalised.

"That's not what happened!"

"Then what did happen?" His voice had gotten louder, inducing Freya to fight back. She smacked his chest and attempted to push him away, but he held steadfastly onto her waist.

"Blimey, Sirius! Nothing, okay? Did you ever stop to think for a second that maybe I was just busy?" He threw his head back and let out a laugh, but it was devoid of any humour.

"Every time you see me in the corridors you turn the other direction, and you want me to believe that you do it because you're busy?" He scoffed. "As if."

Freya was beginning to grow weary of their row. "Do you say things like this to all the girls you shag in broom cupboards? Or are you trying extra hard to annoy me?" Sirius' face slackened for half a second, but she still noticed.

"I've never shagged a girl in a broom cupboard." He paused, smirking. "I'm decent enough to shag them in a bed." Anger and humiliation pulsed through her blood as she raised her hand to smack the smile off of his face, but Sirius was too quick and his fingers circled around her wrist, stopping her hand's decent to his face. "Are you going to slap me, Freya," he asked, mocking her. Her chest rose and fell as she drew in large gulps of air, trying to get her anger in check. She turned her head towards the window and watched the rain fall onto it; refusing to look at Sirius. If he hadn't known better, he would have thought she was crying. He sighed and pulled her closer to him, but her body was stiff and unyielding. He was beyond frustrated with the female population. "I hadn't meant for this to end up in such a mess. I just wanted to understand why…" his voice died off at the end.

Her face was stuffed into his chest, making her voice muffled. "Why what?" She moved back in his arms and allowed herself to look up at his face. They stared into each other's eyes for a moment, not speaking and barely breathing.

"Why are you so scared of being with me?" His voice was soft and comforting and Freya wanted nothing more than to just fall into him and never leave but her more sensible, Lily influenced side told her no. She sighed and shook her head, breaking their contact.

"I just…" she searched for the right words and remembered the dream she had had during the summer, remembered the crazed look in his eye and the way his voice sounded as he cursed her. She shivered at the memory. He stared down at her for a few silent seconds. "Just, drop it, Sirius."

She weaselled her way out of his arms and tried to leave but he grabbed her hand to keep her. "I don't want to drop it." Freya was becoming tired of his antics.

"I don't want to be one of the slags you shag whenever you feel up to it but then forget about after!" Her face burned and her chest rose and fell rapidly with her heavy breathing. Sirius was eyeing her with surprise; his face displaying genuine shock.

"Freya," he began quietly, but she held up her hand to silence him.

"Don't waste your breath." She yanked her hand out of his grasp and hurriedly made her way to the library. Sirius stood back in the hallway and watched her leave but he didn't move to follow her. She didn't understand why she was filled with so much disappointment by this.

When she entered the library, she spotted Lily sitting next to Mason; not wanting to interrupt the two, she made her way over to where James, Peter, and Remus were seated and plopped down on the chair next to Remus. He and James watched her curiously as she slammed her books down and rummaged through her bag for a roll of parchment and a quill. Once she had everything out, she noticed they were all staring at her, Peter had a look of fear in his eyes. "What?" She snapped angrily at them, making Peter jump. James and Remus mumbled incoherent words and went back to work. Freya attempted to do her Potions essay, but her mind was not in it. She was pretty sure she read the same paragraph three times before slumping back in her chair. Remus looked at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Taking a break already?"

She crossed her arms and gave him a defiant look. "I don't need your cheek, Remus." He smiled at her innocently.

"No cheek, just genuine concern." She scoffed. ("Genuine concern my ass.") She looked over at James who was burning a hole in the back of Mason's head with his stare. She was about to say something when a body slid into the chair across from her. Sirius had arrived and he made a point of staring at Freya. She tried her best to ignore him, but she would bet fifty galleons that he knew she wasn't actually reading her textbook. "Where have you been," Remus asked, looking across the table.

He tore his gaze away from her and grinned at his friend. "I just had a nice walk with Freya around the castle." Remus raised his eyebrows and glanced over to his left where Freya sat, trying to hide her flushed face.

"Really?" Sirius nodded. "What did you do on this walk?" The grin slid off of his face.

"We talked about the weather," he said plainly.

Remus gave him a look. "The weather?" Sirius nodded again and Remus shook his head, moving back to his work. "If you say so." Freya let out a long breath and chanced a glance at Sirius. He was staring at her, unashamed and did not look away when their eyes met.

*†‡†*

Meanwhile, Lily and Mason had finished their Arithmancy work and were talking about the nonverbal spells they were learning in DADA. Mason had admitted to having slight problems with the nonverbal spells and so Lily was helping him a bit with it.

"I don't know if it works for everybody, but I just say the word really strongly, and clearly inside of my head." Mason nodded, and took out his wand, but Lily put her hand on top of his quickly, halting his movements. "Don't try to think about the spell too hard like some people." She blushed and pulled her hand back. "It makes them look constipated." He chuckled.

"I'll try my best not to." Lily smiled at him, encouragingly. He pointed his wand towards one of the quills resting on the table. She watched as the quill slowly began to shrink. Once it had stopped, Mason let out a breathy laugh. "Wow, I really did it." He smiled at Lily who beamed back at him. She put a hand on his arm.

"You just needed a tiny bit of encouragement." They locked eyes and she felt her stomach flutter.

"I also had a bit of help from a brilliant, Gryffindor beauty." He winked at her and she felt her cheeks heat up a little. "But seriously, Lily, I had a really great time working with you. You're a bloody brilliant witch." She felt her face heat up more at his compliment.

"Thank you, Mason. It was nice being able to work with you today. I hope we can do it again in the future." They were both too busy looking at each other to notice James' gaze burning holes into the back of Mason's head. James rarely ever got jealous, but when he did, Lily was always at the root of it. Fuming with anger, he turned back to his friends.

"You know," they looked up at him, "I think I will ask Estella out on a date." Sirius slapped him on the back.

"I'm glad to hear it, Prongsie!" The outburst from Sirius earned them a hard glare from Madam Pince.

Freya eyed him, suspiciously. "This better not be to get a rouse out of Lily. Estella doesn't deserve that."

James looked offended. "It's not. And even if it was..." he glanced over at Lily and Mason and shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "It wouldn't work." Freya's look turned from one of suspicion to that of pity.

"Well, if that's the case I think you and she will make a nice pairing."

James murmured a thanks and looked down at his finished Potions essay. It wasn't exactly O value but he couldn't bring himself to care. He packed up his stuff and glanced out the window, the rain had slowed to a soft drizzle. He turned to Sirius. "Fancy a fly around the pitch?" His friend jumped at the chance.

"Sounds good, mate, I'm getting tired of this stink hole anyway." He stood up and waved his wand, packing all of his things back into his school bag. He saluted Remus and Peter as they walked away. "See you lot later!" he called over his shoulder. He looked back at Freya to say goodbye but she was staring out the window.

As he and James made their way up to Gryffindor tower to grab their brooms, James bumped into Aurora Kingsman. He had knocked her over and she was now glaring up at them from beneath her tangle of long blonde hair. She looked as if she were about to tell them off, but then her brown eyes widened as she realised who she had bumped into.

"Hello there, Captain." She quickly got to her feet and smiled at them. "Sirius," she tipped her head to him in acknowledgement. "What has you two in such a hurry?"

James spoke up. "We were actually about to go down to the pitch," he paused. "You are going to try out for the team this year, right Kingsman?" She nodded her head once.

"I'm supposed to go meet my sister in the common room, so I'll catch you lot later." She went to move past them but Sirius grabbed onto her. She raised one of her eyebrows at him. "Can I help you, Sirius?"

He let go of her and stood up straighter, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Actually, I think you can." She crossed her arms and jutted out her hip expectantly.

"Well spit it out."

He asked the question quickly. "Is your sister seeing anybody?" Apparently she hadn't expected him to ask that specific question for she rocked back on her heals and her eyes narrowed dangerously.

"What's it to you?"

Sirius shook his head. "No, no, no. Not for me, but for Prongs here." He gestured over to James who was standing next to him, running his hand through his messy hair. Aurora eyed them for a second before bursting out in laughter.

After a few seconds, she calmed down and was able to talk. "That's very funny, but what did you really mean to ask me?" James frowned.

"Is it that unbelievable? For me to fancy your sister?" Aurora gave him a look.

"You chased after Lily Evans for your whole fifth year and then all of a sudden you fancy my sister?" She shook her head. "Besides, Estella has had the most terrible fancy for you since her third year. I think it would give her a heart attack to know that you fancy her as well." Sirius beamed at this new information. He wrapped his arm around James' shoulders and shook him.

"Hear that? She fancies you! You've got to ask her out now." James scowled at Sirius and unwrapped his arm from around him.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it Padfoot, I'll do it this evening." Aurora's eyes narrowed.

"What? Are you being forced to ask out my sister or something?"

James moved quickly to fix his mistake. "No! No, of course I'm not; my friends have just been err, encouraging me to talk to your sister more because she's pretty." He gave her an uneasy smile. She glared at him for a few more moments before relenting and relaxing. She gave a sweet smile.

"All right, Captain, but if you hurt her," her smile fell and she pulled herself up to her full height, which was pretty tall considering her age. "I'll break you."

James gave a forced laugh. "Right, well thanks for your help." He and Sirius backed away from her and walked down the hall. She straightened and smiled, waving at them as they went.

Sirius let out a long breath once they had turned the corner. "Merlin, for a cute fourteen year old girl, I forget how scary she can be at times. Thank God she's in Gryffindor." James grinned in agreement.

"Tell me about."

*†‡†*

Wet with rain and sweat, Sirius and James earned a lot of admiring stares from the girls in the Gryffindor common room as they made their way over to the fire where Lily and Peter sat watching Remus get his ass handed to him by Freya. The two were engaged in a game of Wizard's Chess. Mary Macdonald and Alice Prewett sat close by, going through what seemed to be notes for one of their classes. Estella Kingsman could be seen on the opposite side of the room, watching James out of the corner of her eye and blushing whenever one of her friends pointed it out. James and Sirius brought their brooms off of their shoulders and set them down by the fire with care, even though it was a known fact that James Potter had the biggest broom collection at Hogwarts, he still treated each and every one of them with the upmost care. Hearing his name, he glanced up at the girls in the corner, most of them were staring at him but the only one that caught his eye was Estella. He smiled at her, making her friends erupt into whispers and nudges. He turned to Sirius who was staring down the front of Freya's robes, a feat that earned him a whack in the back of the head from James.

"Oy," he cried, rubbing the back of his head. "What in Merlin's name was that for?"

He rolled his eyes. "You know bloody well what that was for." Sirius gave a crooked smile.

"All right may be I did, but there was no need for violence." His eyes followed James gaze, landing on Estella. "Are you going to talk to her or continue staring like a madman?" James turned back to look at his friend.

"I'm just trying to figure out if this is a good thing or not." Sirius wrapped an arm around him.

"Going out with a pretty girl could never be a bad thing, mate." He glanced at Freya quickly. "Now go woo her, Prongs." He pushed James up onto his feet and steered him towards Estella.

James got a lot of curious stares as he made his way across the common room to where Estella sat with her friends. He stood in front of them, smiling at her and putting on his confident self. "Hey Estella, I just wanted to ask, what are you doing on Saturday?"

Her face was flushed and her eyes were sparkling, she kept eye contact with him. "I don't know…" James put on false surprise.

"Really? Cause I do." Sirius' barking laughter could be heard on the other side of the room. "I would like to spend Saturday with you. Come watch the Quidditch try out, and then for the rest of the day I'm yours." He ran a hand through his hair, knowing it would seal the deal. Flustered and blushing, she nodded her head.

"It sounds like a good enough deal." She smiled at him. James leaned down and brought her hand to his lips, making her flush more.

He looked up at her from his bent position. "Great, it's a date." He straightened and backed away towards his friends. "I look forward to seeing you at my try out."

"How will I know which player you are," she asked coquettishly.

James grinned. "Just looked for the best one." He winked at her before turning around and walking the rest of the way to his friends with a triumphant bounce in his step. He could hear the girls behind him giggling and whispering about what had just happened.

A slap on the back from Sirius awaited him once he sat down with his friends. "Well done, mate!" Peter smiled at him crookedly and gave two thumbs up. Remus was smiling.

"That didn't look too hard," he commented.

James laughed. "Yeah, it was pretty easy to get back into the swing of things." He grinned. "I'm actually finding myself looking forward to this date." Freya was smirking at him.

"It seems like you're not the only one looking forward to it. Estella looked like she was going to faint when you walked over." Everyone laughed in the group except for Lily who was frowning.

"Why do you all of a sudden have a fancy for Estella Kingsman?"

James put his hands behind his head and slid down in his seat to get more comfortable. "Why so nosy, Evans? Don't tell me you're jealous." Lily shrunk back.

"Of course I'm not." She said defensively. "I can't understand why all of a sudden you've taken interest with her is all." James gave her a hard stare.

"Well, if you're so keen on knowing why, I'll tell you." She looked at him expectantly. "I've sorted out my priorities." Lily's face paled in the firelight and her jaw dropped slightly. It opened and closed for a moment as she searched for words.

"Err, if that's what you've decided then…I guess." She stood up and pulled Freya with her. "We'll see you guys tomorrow…" she trailed off at the end as she walked towards the stairs leading to the girls' dormitory. Freya smiled and waved as she left, her eyes caught Sirius' and her smile dropped. She turned around and jogged after Lily, red hair flowing out behind her.

*†‡†*

Once safely inside the sixth year girl's dormitory, Lily fell down onto her bed feeling confused and worried for her sanity. She felt her mattress sink lower as Freya sat down at the foot.

"What's gotten into you?" She asked crossing her legs to sit more comfortably. Lily blew out a long breath of air.

"I don't know."

Freya eyed her calculatingly. "Do you fancy James?"

Lily choked on air. "No!" She sat up quickly and faced her friend. "I just… I don't know, I guess I didn't expect him to ask somebody else out on a date after last year."

Freya raised an eyebrow. "So, you thought James wouldn't fancy anybody besides you?"

Lily shook her head. "It's not that…I suppose I just thought he wouldn't give up that easily, yeah?"

Freya shrugged. "Sometimes he can be unpredictable. But being honest, I didn't think he was about to accept my offer either." Lily's head snapped towards her.

"What offer?"

Freya gave her a Cheshire smile. "That's for me to know, silly." Lily gave her an exasperated look.


End file.
